Cynthia Ann Bashant (born March 18, 1960) is a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of California and former judge of the San Diego Superior Court.

Early life and education

Bashant was born in 1960 in San Francisco, California. She received an

Artium Baccalaureus 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 years ...

degree in 1982 from

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith (Smith College ...

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 law ...

in 1986 from the

University of California, Hastings College of Law The University of California, Hastings College of the Law (UC Hastings) is a public law school in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1878 by Serranus Clinton Hastings, UC Hastings was the first law school of the University of California a ...

.President Obama Nominates Eight to Serve on United States District Courts

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(September 19, 2013).

Legal career

Bashant began her career in private practice in San Diego, as an associate at MacDonald, Halsted & Laybourne from 1986 to 1988 and then as associate at Baker & McKenzie from 1988 to 1989, practicing civil litigation at both firms. Bashant served as an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

in the Southern District of California from 1989 to 2000. She served as deputy chief of narcotics from 1995 to 1997 and chief of border crimes from 1997 to 1998. In these positions, Bashant prosecuted crimes involving Mexican drug cartels and

methamphetamine lab Clandestine chemistry is chemistry carried out in secret, and particularly in illegal drug laboratories. Larger labs are usually run by gangs or organized crime intending to produce for distribution on the black market. Smaller labs can be run ...

State and federal judicial service

From 2000 until 2014, when she joined the federal bench, Bashant has served as a judge of the Superior Court of California, San Diego County, handling both criminal and juvenile matters. From 2009 to 2012, she was the presiding judge for the juvenile dependency and delinquency courts. On September 19, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Bashant to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, to the seat vacated by Judge

Irma Elsa Gonzalez Irma Elsa Gonzalez (born March 29, 1948) is a retired United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, who was the first Mexican-American female federal judge.http://womenslegalhistory.sta ...

, who assumed senior status on March 29, 2013. On January 16, 2014 her nomination was reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. On April 11, 2014 Senate Majority Leader Reid filed a motion to invoke cloture on the nomination. On April 29, 2014 a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination was agreed to by a 56–41 vote. On April 30, 2014 the nomination was confirmed by a 94–0 vote. She received her judicial commission on May 8, 2014.

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bashant, Cynthia 1960 births Living people Assistant United States Attorneys California lawyers California state court judges Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California Smith College alumni Superior court judges in the United States United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama University of California, Hastings College of the Law alumni 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges