Charnelle Bjelkengren
Bjelkengren in 2023
Judge of Spokane County Superior Court
Incumbent
Assumed office
April 10, 2019
Appointed byJay Inslee
Preceded byJames Triplet
Personal details
PronunciationBELL-ken-gren
Born
Charnelle Marie Bjelkengren

1975 (age 48–49)
Great Lakes, Illinois, U.S.
EducationMinnesota State University, Mankato (BA)
Gonzaga University (JD)

Charnelle Marie Bjelkengren (born 1975)[1] is an American lawyer who has served as a judge of the Spokane County Superior Court since 2019. She is a former nominee to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington.

Education

Bjelkengren received a Bachelor of Arts from Mankato State University (now Minnesota State University), cum laude, in 1997 and a Juris Doctor from Gonzaga University School of Law in 2000.[2]

Career

From 2001 to 2003 and from 2004 to 2013, Bjelkengren served as an assistant attorney general in the Washington State Attorney General's office. From 2013 to 2019, she served as an administrative law judge for Washington State's Office of Administrative Hearings. Since 2019, she has served as a judge on the Spokane County Superior Court.[2]

Nomination to district court

On September 2, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Bjelkengren to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington on the seat vacated by Judge Salvador Mendoza Jr., who was elevated to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on September 16, 2022. Bjelkengren was recommended to Biden by senator Patty Murray.[3] On September 19, 2022, her nomination was sent to the Senate.[4] On January 3, 2023, her nomination was returned to the president under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. She was renominated on January 23, 2023.[5] On January 25, 2023, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[6] During her confirmation hearing, Bjelkengren could not answer questions from Senator John Kennedy about the United States Constitution, including the functions of Article II and Article V and the meaning of purposivism.[7][8][9][10][11] Bjelkengren was subsequently sharply criticized by other Senate Republicans, with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell noting that Bjelkengren had a lack of experience in the federal court system and could only name six cases when asked for her top ten list of the most impactful cases she had ever litigated in court.[12][13] Bjelkengren received a "Qualified" rating from the American Bar Association.[14] On May 11, 2023, her nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–10 vote.[15][16] Her nomination was again returned to the president on January 3, 2024.[17] On January 9, 2024, Bjelkengren withdrew her name from consideration as a federal judge.[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "President Biden Names Twenty-Sixth Round of Judicial Nominees" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. September 2, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2022. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ↑ "At Senator Murray's Recommendation, President Biden Nominates Judge Charnelle Bjelkengren to Serve as U.S. District Court Judge in the Eastern District of Washington" (Press release). September 2, 2022. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. September 19, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. January 23, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. January 24, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Internet shocked at Biden judicial nominee's failure to answer simple question on legal procedure". MSN.
  8. ↑ Concepcion, Summer; Thorp V, Frank (26 January 2023). "Sen. Kennedy stumps Biden judicial nominee with basic questions about Constitution". NBC News. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  9. ↑ Bolton, Alexander (January 31, 2023). "McConnell mocks Biden judicial nominee for flubbing basic legal questions". The Hill.
  10. ↑ "Republicans Rip Biden Court Pick For Bungling Questions On Constitution". HuffPost. January 31, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Biden Judicial Pick Who Failed Spot Quiz Attracts GOP Criticism". news.bloomberglaw.com.
  12. ↑ Bolton, Alexander (January 31, 2023). "McConnell mocks Biden judicial nominee for flubbing basic legal questions". The Hill.
  13. ↑ Palmer, Ewan (February 2, 2023). "Mitch McConnell Ripping Biden Nominee Over Basic Legal Flubs Goes Viral". newsweek.com. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  14. ↑ Donovan-Smith, Orion (February 26, 2023). "We the People: As Biden outpaces Trump in getting judicial nominees confirmed, Republicans target Spokane County judge". spokesman.com. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – May 11, 2023" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  16. ↑ Donovan-Smith, Orion. "Nomination of Spokane County judge advances to Senate floor after Feinstein's return". spokesman.com. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  17. ↑ "PN181 — Charnelle Bjelkengren — The Judiciary".
  18. ↑ Epperly, Emma (January 9, 2024). "Spokane County Judge Charnelle Bjelkengren will not be renominated to federal bench". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
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