DeAndrea G. Benjamin explained

DeAndrea Benjamin
Office:Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Term Start:February 21, 2023
Appointer:Joe Biden
Predecessor:Henry F. Floyd
Office1:Judge of the South Carolina Circuit Court for the 5th Circuit
Appointer1:General Assembly
Term Start1:February 2, 2011
Term End1:February 21, 2023
Birth Name:DeAndrea Donale Gist
Birth Date:4 October 1972
Birth Place:Columbia, South Carolina, U.S.
Children:2 daughters
Education:Winthrop University (BA)
University of South Carolina (JD)

DeAndrea Gist Benjamin (née DeAndrea Donale Gist;[1] born October 4, 1972)[2] [3] is an American lawyer serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. She previously served as a judge of the South Carolina Circuit Court for the fifth district.

Early life and education

Benjamin was born in 1972 in Columbia, South Carolina, to Donald and Adrienne Gist. She graduated from Columbia High School in 1990.[4] Benjamin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Winthrop University in 1994 and a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1997.[5]

Career

In 1997 and 1998, Benjamin served as a law clerk for Judge L. Casey Manning of the fifth judicial circuit of the South Carolina Circuit Court. In 1998 and 1999, she was an assistant solicitor in the Juvenile and Family Court Division of the Fifth Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office. From 1999 to 2001, she served as an assistant attorney general in the South Carolina Attorney General's Office. Benjamin worked at the Gist Law Firm from 2001 to 2011.[6]

In 2001, Governor Jim Hodges appointed Benjamin to the Juvenile Parole Board where she served from July 2001 to June 2004. From 2004 to 2011, she was a Columbia city judge.[7] In February 2010, Benjamin had an unsuccessful bid for family court (Fifth Judicial Circuit Family Court Seat 1).[8] She was appointed to serve as a judge of the South Carolina Circuit Court for the fifth district in 2011.[9] In 2021, Benjamin lost a bid for the South Carolina Court of Appeals. The legislature instead chose then-family court judge Jay Vinson of Florence in a 94–63 vote.[10]

Federal judicial service

On August 9, 2022, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Benjamin to serve as a United States circuit judge for the Fourth Circuit.[11] On September 6, 2022, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Benjamin to the seat vacated by Judge Henry F. Floyd, who assumed senior status on December 31, 2021.[12] House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn recommended Benjamin for the vacancy.[13] On November 15, 2022, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[14] During her confirmation hearing, Republican senators questioned her decisions granting bond and early release of defendants.[15] [16] [17] On December 8, 2022, her nomination was favorably reported by the committee by a 13–9 vote.[18] [19] [20] On January 3, 2023, her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate; she was renominated later the same day.[21] On February 2, 2023, her nomination was favorably reported by the committee by a 12–8 vote.[22] On February 2, 2023, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on her nomination.[23] On February 7, 2023, the Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 54–43 vote.[24] On February 9, 2023, her nomination was confirmed by a 53–44 vote.[25] She received her judicial commission on February 21, 2023. She became the second African American woman to serve on the Fourth Circuit,[26] and the first African American woman from South Carolina to serve on the Fourth Circuit.[27]

Personal life

Benjamin married Stephen K. Benjamin in 2002. He served as mayor of Columbia from 2010 to 2022. They have two daughters. In December 2013, Benjamin's brother Donald Gist Jr. was shot and killed in a parking lot of a Queens Mini-Mart store in Charlotte, North Carolina.[28]

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Columbia High awards diplomas. The State (Columbia, SC). June 14, 1990.
  2. Web site: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees. November 15, 2022. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
  3. Book: South Carolina Legislative Manual. https://web.archive.org/web/20220616064520/https://www.scstatehouse.gov/man22/42_CircuitCourt.pdf#page=5. June 16, 2022. 2022. 103rd. 376. Reid. Charles F..
  4. Web site: Judge DeAndrea G. Benjamin . https://web.archive.org/web/20211107190939/https://www.sccourts.org/circuitCourt/displaycirjudge.cfm?judgeid=2161 . November 7, 2021 . August 9, 2022.
  5. Web site: August 9, 2022 . President Biden Names Twenty-Fifth Round of Judicial Nominees . August 9, 2022 . The White House . en-US.
  6. Web site: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees. November 15, 2022. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
  7. Web site: Biden picks longtime Columbia judge as nominee for federal court. August 9, 2022. wltx.com.
  8. Web site: Judicial Merit Selection Commission – Personal Data Questionnaire . August 11, 2022.
  9. Web site: Biden to nominate SC Judge DeAndrea Gist Benjamin to 4th Circuit Court of Appeals . August 9, 2022 . MSN . en-US.
  10. Web site: President Biden to nominate SC Judge DeAndrea Benjamin to 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals. Seanna . Adcox. Post and Courier. August 9, 2022 .
  11. Web site: Monk. John. August 9, 2022. Biden to nominate SC Judge DeAndrea Gist Benjamin to 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. August 9, 2022. The State.
  12. Nominations Sent to the Senate. September 6, 2022. The White House. Washington, D.C..
  13. Web site: Biden to nominate SC Judge DeAndrea Gist Benjamin to 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. August 9, 2022 .
  14. Web site: Nominations. November 15, 2022. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Washington, D.C..
  15. Web site: SC Judge Benjamin praised by Democrats, grilled by GOP senators over past case decisions.
  16. Web site: Fourth Circuit Nominee Faces GOP Flak Despite Bipartisan Support.
  17. News: Senate Democrats ramp up nominee push, weighing 4th Circuit pick. Reuters . November 15, 2022 . Scarcella . Mike .
  18. Web site: Results of Executive Business Meeting – December 8, 2022. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. December 8, 2022.
  19. Web site: Biden Fourth Circuit Nominee Benjamin Clears Judiciary Committee.
  20. News: U.S. Senate advances Biden's 4th Circuit nominee Benjamin. Reuters . December 8, 2022 . Raymond . Nate .
  21. Nominations Sent to the Senate. January 3, 2023. The White House. Washington, D.C..
  22. Web site: Results of Executive Business Meeting – February 2, 2023. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. February 2, 2023.
  23. Web site: PN88 — DeAndrea Gist Benjamin — The Judiciary . 2023-07-07 . Congress.gov.
  24. Web site: February 7, 2023. On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: DeAndrea Gist Benjamin to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit). February 7, 2023. United States Senate.
  25. Web site: February 9, 2023. On the Nomination (Confirmation: DeAndrea Gist Benjamin, of South Carolina, to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit). February 9, 2023. United States Senate.
  26. Web site: Senate confirms SC Judge DeAndrea Benjamin to powerful 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals.
  27. Web site: SC Judge DeAndrea Benjamin confirmed by US Senate for high-profile 4th Circuit Court seat.
  28. Web site: SC mayor's brother-in-law killed in Charlotte . .