Edward Davila Explained

Office:Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
Term Start:March 3, 2011
Appointer:Barack Obama
Predecessor:Marilyn Hall Patel
Office1:Judge of the Santa Clara County Superior Court
Term Start1:August 8, 2001
Term End1:March 3, 2011
Appointer1:Gray Davis
Predecessor1:Donald Clark
Successor1:Allison Danner
Birth Name:Edward John Davila
Birth Date:21 June 1952
Birth Place:Palo Alto, California, U.S.
Spouse:Mary Greenwood
Education:

College of the Law
(JD)

Edward John Davila (born June 21, 1952) is an American lawyer who serves as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He was previously a state court judge on the Santa Clara County Superior Court from 2001 to 2011.

Early life and education

Davila was born in Palo Alto, California. He received a Bachelor of Arts from San Diego State University in 1976.[1] He then attended the University of California, Hastings College of the Law and earned his Juris Doctor in 1979.[1]

Legal career

From 1981 to 1988, he served as a deputy public defender in the Santa Clara County Public Defender's Office and later in private practice at the law firm of Davila & Polverino from 1988 to 2001.[1]

Judicial career

State judicial service

On August 8, 2001, Governor Gray Davis appointed Davila to serve as a judge on the Superior Court of Santa Clara County.[2] [3] Davila replaced Judge Donald Clark.[2]

While a superior court judge, Davila presided over the high-profile case of a Las Vegas couple,[4] Anna Ayala and Jaime Placencia, who planted a severed human finger in a bowl of Wendy's chili.[5] On January 18, 2006, Davila sentenced Ayala to 9 years in prison and Placencia to 12 years and 4 months in prison.[5] However, the Sixth District California Court of Appeal ordered Davila to resentence Ayala in 2007 on the grounds that Davila improperly added years to the sentence based on extenuating circumstances without a jury's findings.[6] Davila subsequently modified the sentence to four years in 2008.[7]

Federal judicial service

During the 111th Congress, Senator Barbara Boxer recommended Davila to fill the United States District Court for the Northern District of California vacancy created by Judge Marilyn Hall Patel, who assumed senior status.[8] [9] On May 20, 2010, President Barack Obama formally nominated Davila to the Northern District of California.[1] The Senate Judiciary Committee recommended his confirmation on December 1, 2010, but the Senate decided to recess without confirming him.[9] [10] [11] Obama renominated Davila on January 5, 2011.[11] [12] That nomination was approved by the Judiciary Committee on February 3, and he was confirmed by the Senate on February 14, 2011, by a 93–0 vote.[13] He received his commission on March 3, 2011.

Davila presided over the criminal trial of former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes and COO Sunny Balwani.[14] [15] Holmes was found guilty on four counts on fraud in January 2022 and sentenced to 11.25 years (135 months) in prison on November 18, 2022,[16] while Balwani was convicted of 12 counts of fraud in July 2022 and sentenced to nearly 13 years (155 months) in prison on December 7, 2022.

Personal life

Davila is married to Mary Greenwood, who formerly served as Santa Clara County Public Defender and is presiding justice of the California Court of Appeal for the Sixth District. They reside in Menlo Park, California.[10]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: May 20, 2010 . President Obama Names Three to United States District Court . November 19, 2022 . whitehouse.gov . en.
  2. http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2001/08/06/daily28.html New judges named
  3. Web site: Davis Appoints Commissioner, Attorney to Fill Vacancies on Santa Clara Superior Court . November 19, 2022 . www.metnews.com.
  4. News: Anna Ayala Faces New Charge . KLAS-TV news . May 13, 2005 . May 2, 2012 . Associated Press.
  5. News: Couple Sentenced to Prison for Wendy's Chili Scheme. Glater. Jonathan D.. January 19, 2006. The New York Times. July 27, 2024. February 17, 2006. http://web.archive.org/web/20060217140423/http://www.nytimes.com:80/2006/01/19/national/19finger.html?ex=1295326800&en=52d3f82f5fbda910&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss. live.
  6. News: Lee. Henry K.. Chili finger woman Anna Ayala wins appeal, may get sentence reduced. San Francisco Chronicle. September 22, 2007. July 27, 2024. http://web.archive.org/web/20070930170529/http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/22/BAFDSBUST.DTL. September 30, 2007. live. limited.
  7. https://casetext.com/case/people-v-ayala-2081 People v. Ayala
  8. Bob Egelko, Obama nominates Edward Davila for federal bench, San Francisco Chronicle (May 21, 2010).
  9. Presidential Nomination no. PN1813-111, Edward J. Davila, of California, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of California, vice Marilyn Hall Patel, retired, May 20, 2010 (111th Congress)
  10. News: Mintz. Howard. Edward Davila wins key senate endorsement for federal judge. February 3, 2011. San Jose Mercury News. December 1, 2010.
  11. News: Mintz. Howard. Santa Clara County judge Davila another step closer to joining federal bench. February 3, 2011. San Jose Mercury News. February 3, 2011.
  12. Presidential Nomination no. PN21-112, Edward J. Davila, of California, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of California, vice Marilyn Hall Patel, retired, January 5, 2011 (112th Congress)
  13. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation Edward J. Davila, of California, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of California). United States Senate. December 17, 2022.
  14. Web site: United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, et al. 18-CR-00258-EJD . United States District Court Northern District of California . September 9, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210901202609/https://cand.uscourts.gov/judges/davila-edward-j-ejd/usa-v-holmes/ . September 1, 2021.
  15. Web site: Huang . Kalley . December 7, 2022 . No. 2 Theranos Executive Is Sentenced to More Than 12 Years for Fraud . . limited . https://web.archive.org/web/20221207224134/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/07/technology/sunny-balwani-theranos-sentenced.html . December 7, 2022 . live.
  16. Web site: Paul . Kari . November 18, 2022 . Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes sentenced to more than 11 years for defrauding investors . November 18, 2022 . . en.