Samuel James Otero (born December 30, 1951) is a former

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the Central District of California The United States District Court for the Central District of California (in case citations, C.D. Cal.; commonly referred to as the CDCA or CACD) is a Federal trial court that serves over 19 million people in Southern and Central California, ...

Early life and education

Otero was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. He received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree from California State University, Northridge in 1973 and a Juris Doctor from

Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...

in 1976.

Career

Otero was an attorney for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office from 1976 to 1987. He was Regional Counsel for Southern Pacific Transportation Company from 1987 to 1988.

Judicial service

Otero was a judge on the Los Angeles Municipal Court from 1988 to 1990 and then a judge on the

Los Angeles Superior Court The Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, is the California superior court with jurisdiction over Los Angeles County, which includes the city of Los Angeles. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States. The ...

from 1990 to 2003.

District court service

On January 7, 2003, President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

nominated Otero to a seat on the Central District vacated by Richard Paez. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on February 10, 2003, and received his commission two days later. He assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...

on December 30, 2018, his 67th birthday. He retired on April 10, 2020.

Notable cases

''Association of Christian Schools International v. Stearns (2008)''

Otero wrote that the Calvary Chapel Christian School "provided no evidence of animus" on the part of university officials, who he said had a "rational basis" for determining that the proposed Calvary courses would not meet the UC college preparatory requirements. He said that UC's review committees cited legitimate reasons for rejecting the texts - not because they contained religious viewpoints, but because they omitted important topics in science and history and failed to teach critical thinking. On January 26, 2009, ACSI filed an appeal on the decision. On January 12, 2010, the

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

affirmed the federal district court's summary judgment in favor of the University of California. On October 12, 2010, the Supreme Court declined to review the case, effectively ending it.

''Valentini'' v. ''McDonald'' case (2013)

On August 29, 2013, Otero ruled that by not using the land to provide health care for armed forces veterans, the VA was in violation of federal law. He stated in his ruling that the agency had abused its discretion by leasing land for purposes "totally divorced from the provision of healthcare," but delayed enforcement of his order so the government could appeal. West Los Angeles

Veterans' Administration The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

lease of VA land for the

Jackie Robinson Stadium Jackie Robinson Stadium is a college baseball park in Los Angeles, California. It is the home field of the UCLA Bruins of the Pac-12 Conference. Opened in 1981, it is the smallest ballpark in the conference, with a seating capacity of 1,820. ...

to UCLA, a film studio storage lot and other businesses were deemed illegal and their agreements were held void.

''Clifford v. Essential Consultants (2018)''

In March 2018, Otero was assigned the case of ''Clifford v. Essential Consultants, LLC et. al.,'' which is the federal case that encompasses the details of the Stormy Daniels–Donald Trump scandal. Otero dismissed Daniels (real name Stephanie Clifford) defamation claim on October 15, 2018, ruling that the tweet was protected by the First Amendment. He expanded on his ruling stating - "“''If this Court were to prevent Mr. Trump from engaging in this type of ‘rhetorical hyperbole’ against a political adversary, it would significantly hamper the office of the President. Any strongly-worded response by a president to another politician or public figure could constitute an action for defamation. This would deprive this country of the ‘discourse’ common to the political process”.'' Daniels' other claims remain pending.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Otero, S. James 1951 births Living people 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges California lawyers California state court judges California State University, Northridge alumni Hispanic and Latino American judges Judges of the United States District Court for the Central District of California People from Los Angeles Stanford Law School alumni Superior court judges in the United States United States district court judges appointed by George W. Bush