Tanya Marie Walton Pratt (born December 14, 1959) is the Chief United States district judge of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana (in case citations, S.D. Ind.) is a federal district court in Indiana. It was created in 1928 by an act of Congress that split Indiana into two separate districts, northern an ...

Early life and education

Born in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

, Pratt graduated from Cathedral High School, then went on to earn 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 yea ...

degree from

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman rece ...

in 1981 and a

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 l ...

from

Howard University School of Law Howard University School of Law (Howard Law or HUSL) is the law school of Howard University, a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is one of the oldest law schools in the country and the ol ...

in 1984..

Career

In 1981 she was a security guard at Brink's Security in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton County, the mos ...

. In 1982 she was a summer intern for the center township assessor's office in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mar ...

. From 1986 to 1991 she was a deputy public defender for

Marion County, Indiana Marion County is located in the U.S. state of Indiana. The 2020 United States census reported a population of 977,203, making it the largest county in the state and 51st most populated county in the country. Indianapolis is the county seat, th ...

. From 1993 to 1996 she was a pro tempore judge for the Marion County Superior Court. From 1984 until 1992, Pratt worked as an associate attorney for the Moss & Walton law firm in Indianapolis. From 1992 until 1996, Pratt was with the same firm with the title of attorney. In 1997, Pratt became a judge in

, working in the Criminal Division and presiding over major

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...

matters from 1997 until 2008. She was assigned to Marion County's

probate court A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as Orphans' Courts o ...

in 2009, and served there from 2009 until 2010.

Federal judicial service

In March 2009, Pratt expressed her interest in a federal judgeship to the staff of Indiana

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Evan Bayh Birch Evans Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh ...

. After interviewing with representatives from the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...

and the Office of the

White House Counsel The White House counsel is a senior staff appointee of the president of the United States whose role is to advise the president on all legal issues concerning the president and their administration. The White House counsel also oversees the Of ...

, Pratt was nominated by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

to the judgeship on January 20, 2010. Pratt filled the vacancy that was created by Judge

David F. Hamilton David Frank Hamilton (born May 5, 1957) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He was previously a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern Di ...

, who was elevated to the

United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in case citations, 7th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts: * Central District of Illinois * Northern District of ...

. The Senate confirmed Pratt by a 95–0 vote on June 15, 2010. She received her commission the same day. Pratt is the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

federal judge in Indiana's history.Associated Press
"Pratt confirmed as 1st black Indiana federal judge"
. June 15, 2010. She became Chief Judge on March 20, 2021. With her swearing in, she became the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

chief judge of the Southern District of Indiana.

Notable rulings

*In 2016, she ruled against Governor

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th ...

's order to cut federally allocated funds for the resettlement of Syrian refugees in Indiana. *In 2018, she ruled against a pregnant woman who was mauled by a police dog because she was not the intended target.

Notable cases

*''U.S. v. Jared Fogle'', Case No. 1:15-cr-159 (2015)

References

External links

* *
Senate Judiciary Committee Questionnaire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Tanya Walton 1959 births Living people African-American judges Howard University School of Law alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana People from Marion County, Indiana Spelman College alumni United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama 21st-century American judges Indiana state court judges 21st-century American women judges Public defenders Cathedral High School (Indianapolis) alumni