Kimberly J. Mueller | |
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| Senior Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California | |
| Assumed office September 17, 2024 | |
| Chief Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California | |
| In office January 1, 2020 – September 17, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Lawrence Joseph O'Neill |
| Succeeded by | Troy L. Nunley |
| Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California | |
| In office December 21, 2010 – September 17, 2024 | |
| Appointed by | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Frank C. Damrell Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Dena M. Coggins |
| Magistrate Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California | |
| In office 2003–2010 | |
| Member of theSacramento City Council from the6th district | |
| In office 1987–1992 | |
| Preceded by | William Smallman |
| Succeeded by | Darrell Steinberg |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1957-09-17)September 17, 1957 (age 68) Newton, Kansas, U.S. |
| Education | Pomona College (BA) Stanford University (JD) |
Kimberly Jo Mueller (born September 17, 1957) is aseniorUnited States district judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California, in theSacramento division. She is the first female district judge to serve in the Eastern District.[1]
Mueller obtained aBachelor of Arts degree fromPomona College in 1981, and aJuris Doctor fromStanford University in 1995.[2][3]
Mueller served as an extern forCalifornia State AssemblymanLloyd Connelly. After moving toSacramento'sTahoe Park neighborhood, Mueller was elected to theSacramento City Council, where she served from 1987 through 1992.[2][4]
While on the council, Mueller was selected to serve as Vice-Mayor and chair of the city's budget committee. She also led a successful effort with then-MayorAnne Rudin to introducecampaign finance reform to the city's politics.[5][6][7]
Mueller left her position on the Sacramento City Council in 1992 to attendStanford Law School.[4] After graduation, she worked for five years at the Sacramento office ofOrrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe, and later opened her own private practice.[2]
In 2003, Mueller was appointed as aUnited States Magistrate Judge of theSacramento division ofUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California, becoming just the second woman to hold this position since the Eastern District was established in 1966.[8][9]
Mueller was formerly anadjunct professor at the University of the PacificMcGeorge School of Law in Sacramento andUC Davis School of Law.[3]
On March 10, 2010, PresidentBarack Obama nominated Mueller to serve asUnited States district judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California.[10] Her nomination was unanimously confirmed by theUnited States Senate on December 16, 2010.[11] Mueller received her commission on December 21, 2010.[3] She became chief judge of the Eastern District of California on January 1, 2020.[12] She assumedsenior status on September 17, 2024.[3]
On February 25, 2015, Mueller upheld California's Unsafe Handgun Act (also known as the handgun roster) as constitutional.[13] The Ninth Circuit affirmed the opinion on August 3, 2018.[14]
On April 17, 2015, Mueller held that criminal defendants charged with marijuana-related crimes had standing to bring a constitutional challenge to marijuana's Schedule I status, but ultimately rejected Defendants' constitutional arguments.[15]
On December 21, 2015, Mueller rejected a First Amendment challenge, filed by crisis pregnancy centers, to California's law requiring them to provide notice to clients regarding the availability of abortions and contraception.[16] The Ninth Circuit affirmed the decision,[17] but the Supreme Court reversed it.[18]
On December 29, 2022, Mueller upheld as constitutional California's ban on openly carrying handguns.[19] The Ninth Circuit reversed the decision on June 29, 2023 saying Mueller "applied the incorrect legal standard" to the case, remanding back to District Court.[20]
Mueller presides over the decades-long case Coleman v. Newsom, a class action challenging the conditions in California's prisons that resulted in a mandated reduction in the prison population and new requirements for medical care, mental health care, and suicide prevention in prisons. She also sits on the three-judge panel that adjudicates certain issues in Coleman and the related case, Brown v. Plata.[21]
Mueller also issued some of the earliest decisions interpreting the First Step Act in the context of requests for compassionate release due to the risk of COVID-19 filed by incarcerated individuals with comorbidities.[22]
Councilwoman Kim Mueller, who held the title last year, nominated Ferris to take her place in 1990
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by William Smallman | Member of theSacramento City Council for the 6th District 1987–1992 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California 2010–2024 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chief Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of California 2020–2024 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
