Richard A. Jones | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jones in 2014 | |
| Senior Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Washington | |
| Assumed office September 5, 2022 | |
| Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Washington | |
| In office October 29, 2007 – September 5, 2022 | |
| Appointed by | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | John C. Coughenour |
| Succeeded by | Jamal Whitehead |
| Judge of theKing County Superior Court | |
| In office 1994–2007 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Richard Anthony Jones 1950 (age 74–75) Seattle,Washington |
| Spouse | Leslie Jones |
| Relatives | Quincy Jones (half-brother) Quincy Jones III (half-nephew) Kidada Jones (half-niece) Rashida Jones (half-niece) Kenya Kinski-Jones (half-niece) |
| Education | Seattle University (BPA) University of Washington (JD) |
Richard Anthony Jones[1] (born 1950) is an American attorney and jurist serving as aseniorUnited States district judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Washington. He previously served as a deputy prosecuting attorney forKing County, Washington, attorney for thePort of Seattle, and assistant United States attorney in the region, in addition to private practice.
Born inSeattle,Washington in 1950, Jones is the son of Quincy Delight Jones Sr., who worked as a semi-professional baseball player and carpenter, and his second wife. He is 17 years younger than his half-brotherQuincy Jones, the noted musician and producer.[2][3]
After attending Seattle public schools, Richard Jones received a Bachelor of Public Administration degree fromSeattle University in 1972 and aJuris Doctor from theUniversity of Washington School of Law in 1975. He was admitted to theWashington State Bar Association in 1977.[1]
Jones was a community liaison officer, Office of King County Prosecuting Attorney, Washington from 1975 to 1977. He was a deputy prosecuting attorney of the Office of King County Prosecuting Attorney from 1977 to 1978. He was a staff attorney of thePort of Seattle from 1978 to 1983.
After being in private practice with the major law firm of Bogle & Gates in Seattle from 1983 to 1988, he became anAssistant United States Attorney of the United States Attorney's Office, Western District of Washington. He served there from 1988 to 1994.
Jones served as a judge on the King County Superior Court, Washington from 1994 to 2007. During this period, he presided over several high-profile cases, including the prosecution ofGary Ridgway, the notorious "Green River Killer" who was known to have killed 48 women.[3]
Jones was recommended by a bipartisan panel in Washington and nominated by PresidentGeorge W. Bush on March 19, 2007, to a seat vacated byJohn C. Coughenour. He was confirmed by theUnited States Senate on October 4, 2007, and received his commission on October 29, 2007. He assumed senior status on September 5, 2022.[4]
In April 2024, Jones sentencedChangpeng Zhao, founder of thecryptocurrency exchangeBinance, to only four months in prison over Zhao's guilty plea tomoney laundering charges, despite federal prosecutors seeking a three-year term.[5] Dennis Kelleher of the non-profit Better Markets criticized the verdict as insufficient to dissuade similar corporate behavior.[6]
Some of Jones's decisions expanding state surveillance powers have been controversial, including one in 2017 to allow unfetteredwarrantless camera surveillance by the City of Seattle by barring the public release, in response to apublic records request, of information regarding cameras installed by theFBI.[7] In a 2016 case also narrowing the scope of a citizen'sreasonable expectation of privacy, he ruled that users of theTor anonymity network, the purpose of which is to provide privacy, do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy and was criticized for not understanding the technology.[8]
He is married to Leslie Jones, diversity program manager forSound Transit.[3] Jones has been active on the board of theYMCA. He also acts as a mentor to minority youth in Seattle.[3]
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Washington 2007–2022 | Succeeded by |