United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina (in case citations, D.S.C.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of South Carolina. Court is held in the cities of Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Charlest ...
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
in 1982 from
Tulane Law School
Tulane University Law School is the law school of Tulane University. It is located on Tulane's Uptown campus in New Orleans
New Orleans ( , ,Louisiana Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit from 1982 to 1983 and as a law clerk for Judge C. Tolbert Goolsby Jr. on the
South Carolina Court of Appeals
The South Carolina Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the state of South Carolina.
Jurisdiction
The Court of Appeals hears most appeals from the Circuit Courts and Family Courts of South Carolina that do not fall with ...
from 1983 to 1984. From 1984 to 1989, she practiced civil litigation with the McNair Law Firm. From 1989 to 1994, she worked as a staff counsel for the South Carolina legislative counsel. From 1994 to 1999, she served as an administrative law judge in South Carolina. From 1999 to 2023, she served as a circuit judge in South Carolina's Fifth Judicial Circuit. In that role, she presided over both criminal and civil trials and handled appeals in municipal, magistrate and zoning cases.Nomination announcement from whitehouse.gov /ref> Lee retired from active status on May 16, 2023.
Failed nomination to federal district court
On June 26, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Lee to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, to the seat being vacated by Judge
Cameron McGowan Currie
Cameron McGowan Currie (born October 3, 1948) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.
Education and career
Born in Florence, South Carolina, Currie received a Bachelor of ...
, who took senior status on October 3, 2013.
Senators Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott opposed her nomination because of a controversial decision she made involving burglary suspect Lorenzo Young. Lee consolidated bonds and reduced the total from $225,000 to $175,000 for Young, who subsequently was released and then later charged in the July 1 slaying of a 33-year-old woman.
Due to opposition from her home state senators and a no opportunity of receiving a hearing, President Obama withdrew her nomination on September 18, 2014.
Failed run for state court of appeals
On February 6, 2019 Lee was defeated in the race for a seat on the South Carolina Court of Appeals by Blake Hewitt, in a vote by the
South Carolina Legislature
The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and t ...
. Her loss prompted a walkout by approximately 20 Black members of the house and senate, in protest over the confirmation of a white lawyer with no judicial experience over a black judge with over 20 years on the bench. It was her sixth bid for a seat on the Court of Appeals.
See also
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Barack Obama judicial appointment controversies
U.S. President Barack Obama nominated over 400 individuals for federal judgeships during his presidency. Of these nominations, Congress confirmed 329 judgeships, 173 during the 111th & 112th Congresses and 156 during the 113th and 114th Congress ...