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United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania

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(Redirected from Middle District of Pennsylvania) United States federal district court in Pennsylvania
United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
(M.D. Pa.)
LocationSylvia H. Rambo United States Courthouse(Harrisburg)More locations
Appeals toThird Circuit
EstablishedMarch 2, 1901
Judges6
Chief JudgeMatthew W. Brann
Officers of the court
U.S. AttorneyGerard Karam
U.S. MarshalWilliam M. Pugh
www.pamd.uscourts.gov

The United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (in case citations, M.D. Pa.) is a district level federal court with jurisdiction over approximately one half of Pennsylvania. The court was created in 1901 by subdividing the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The court is under the jurisdiction of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

Because Harrisburg, the state capital, is located within the district's jurisdiction, most federal suits against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are filed in the Middle District. Similarly, because York County Prison served as the largest Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) facility in the Northeast, the Middle District also adjudicated many immigration cases. The courts of appeal are now responsible for most judicial review of immigration decisions, bypassing the Middle District and other district courts.

Judge Matthew W. Brann is the chief judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; William M. Pugh is the United States marshal for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. As of June 21, 2022, the U.S. attorney is Gerard Karam.

History

The United States District Court for the District of Pennsylvania was one of the original 13 courts established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, 1 Stat. 73, on September 24, 1789. It was subdivided on April 20, 1818, by 3 Stat. 462, into the Eastern and Western Districts to be headquartered in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, respectively. Portions of these districts were subsequently subdivided into the Middle District on March 2, 1901, by 31 Stat. 880.

Current judges

As of January 17, 2025:

# Title Judge Duty station Born Term of service Appointed by
Active Chief Senior
24 Chief Judge Matthew W. Brann Williamsport 1965 2012–present 2021–present — Obama
25 District Judge Jennifer P. Wilson Harrisburg 1975 2019–present — — Trump
26 District Judge Julia K. Munley Scranton 1965 2023–present — — Biden
27 District Judge Karoline Mehalchick Scranton 1976 2024–present — — Biden
28 District Judge Joseph F. Saporito Jr. Wilkes-Barre 1960 2024–present — — Biden
29 District Judge Keli M. Neary Harrisburg 1981 2025–present — — Biden
18 Senior Judge Yvette Kane Harrisburg 1953 1998–2018 2006–2013 2018–present Clinton
22 Senior Judge Robert D. Mariani Scranton 1950 2011–2022 — 2022–present Obama
23 Senior Judge Malachy E. Mannion Scranton 1953 2012–2024 — 2024–present Obama

Former judges

# Judge State Born–died Active service Chief Judge Senior status Appointed by Reason for
termination
1 Robert W. Archbald PA 1848–1926 1901–1911 — — McKinley elevation to 3d Cir.
2 Charles B. Witmer PA 1862–1925 1911–1925 — — Taft death
3 Albert Williams Johnson PA 1872–1957 1925–1945 — — Coolidge resignation
4 Albert Leisenring Watson PA 1876–1960 1929–1955 1948–1955 1955–1960 Hoover death
5 John W. Murphy PA 1902–1962 1946–1962 1955–1962 — Truman death
6 Frederick Voris Follmer PA 1885–1971 1946–1967 1962 1967–1971 Truman death
7 Michael Henry Sheridan PA 1912–1976 1961–1976 1962–1976 — Kennedy death
8 William Joseph Nealon Jr. PA 1923–2018 1962–1989 1976–1989 1989–2018 Kennedy death
9 Robert Dixon Herman PA 1911–1990 1969–1981 — 1981–1990 Nixon death
10 Malcolm Muir PA 1914–2011 1970–1984 — 1984–2011 Nixon death
11 Richard Paul Conaboy PA 1925–2018 1979–1992 1989–1992 1992–2018 Carter death
12 Sylvia Rambo PA 1936–2024 1979–2001 1992–1999 2001–2024 Carter retirement
13 William W. Caldwell PA 1925–2019 1982–1994 — 1994–2019 Reagan death
14 Edwin Michael Kosik PA 1925–2019 1986–1996 — 1996–2019 Reagan death
15 James Focht McClure Jr. PA 1931–2010 1990–2001 — 2001–2010 G.H.W. Bush death
16 Thomas I. Vanaskie PA 1953–present 1994–2010 1999–2006 — Clinton elevation to 3d Cir.
17 A. Richard Caputo PA 1938–2020 1997–2009 — 2009–2020 Clinton death
19 James Martin Munley PA 1936–2020 1998–2009 — 2009–2020 Clinton death
20 Christopher C. Conner PA 1957–present 2002–2025 2013–2020 — G.W. Bush retirement
21 John E. Jones III PA 1955–present 2002–2021 2020–2021 — G.W. Bush retirement
  1. From 1946 to 1955 Judge Follmer was jointly appointed to the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Pennsylvania
  2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1963, confirmed by the United States Senate on March 15, 1963, and received commission on March 27, 1963.

Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.

A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.

When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

Succession of seats

Seat 1
Seat established on March 2, 1901 by 31 Stat. 880
Archbald 1901–1911
Witmer 1911–1925
Johnson 1925–1945
Murphy 1946–1962
Nealon, Jr. 1963–1989
McClure, Jr. 1990–2001
Jones III 2002–2021
Mehalchick 2024–present
Seat 2
Seat established on February 28, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1344
Watson 1929–1955
Seat abolished on May 31, 1955 pursuant to 68 Stat. 8
Seat 3
Seat established on July 24, 1946 by 60 Stat. 654 (temporary) (concurrent with Eastern and Western districts)
Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 2 on May 31, 1955
Seat reassigned solely to the Middle District on June 1, 1955
Follmer 1946–1967
Herman 1969–1981
Caldwell II 1982–1994
J.M. Munley 1998–2009
Mariani 2011–2022
J.K. Munley 2023–present
Seat 4
Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80
Sheridan 1961–1976
Seat abolished on August 23, 1976 (temporary judgeship expired)

Seat 5
Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 (temporary)
Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 4 on August 23, 1976
Muir 1970–1984
Kosik 1986–1996
Kane 1998–2018
Wilson 2019–present
Seat 6
Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629
Conaboy 1979–1992
Caputo 1997–2009
Mannion 2012–2024
Saporito Jr. 2024–present
Seat 7
Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629
Rambo 1979–2001
Conner 2002–2025
Neary 2025–present
Seat 8
Seat established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089
Vanaskie 1994–2010
Brann 2012–present

Notable cases

  • Donald J. Trump for President v. Boockvar, et al., 502 F. Supp. 3d 899 (M.D. Pa. 2020) (affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in a non-precedential opinion, No. 20-3371 (November 2020)).
  • Irvis v. Scott, 318 F. Supp. 1246 (M.D. Pa. 1970) (affirmed by the US Supreme court in 1972 as Moose Lodge No. 107 v. Irvis, 407 U.S. 163 (1972))
  • Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
  • Lozano et al. v. City of Hazleton, M.D. Pa. No. 3:06-cv-01586-JMM (2006) (affirmed in part by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, No. 07-3531 (September 9, 2010)).
  • Whitewood v. Wolf This case struck down Pennsylvania's statutory ban on same-sex marriage on May 20, 2014. This was not appealed to the Third Circuit.

List of U.S. attorneys

The people in the district are represented by the United States attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

  • Samuel McCarrell (1901–1908)
  • Charles B. Witmer (1908–1911)
  • Andrew B. Dunsmore (1911–1914)
  • Rogers L. Burnett (1914–1921)
  • Andrew B. Dunsmore (1921–1934)
  • Frank J. McDonnell (1934–1935)
  • Frederick V. Follmer (1935–1946)
  • Arthur A. Maguire (1946–1953)
  • Joseph C. Kreder (1953)
  • Julius Levy (1953–1957)
  • Robert J. Hourigan (1957–1958)
  • Daniel Jenkins (1958–1961)
  • Bernard J. Brown (1961–1969)
  • John Cottone (1969–1979)
  • Carlon M. O'Malley Jr. (1979–1982)
  • David Dart Queen (1982–1985)
  • James J. West (1985–1993)
  • Wayne P. Samuelson (1993)
  • David Barasch (1993–2001)
  • Martin Carlson (2001–2002)
  • Tom Marino (2002–2007)
  • Martin Carlson (2007–2009)
  • Dennis Pfannenschmidt (2009–2010)
  • Peter J. Smith (2010–2016)
  • Bruce D. Brandler (2016–2017)
  • David Freed (2017–2020)
  • Bruce D. Brandler (2021–2022)
  • Gerard Karam (2022–present)

Courthouses

Within the Middle District, federal courthouses are located in:

Counties of jurisdiction

The Court's jurisdiction includes the following counties:

See also

References

  1. "Gerard M. Karam Sworn In As U.S. Attorney For The Middle District Of Pennsylvania" (Press release). Scranton, Pennsylvania: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  2. ^ Asbury Dickens, A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America (1852), p. 388.
  3. ^ U.S. District Courts of Pennsylvania, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center.
  4. ^ "Listing of U.S. Attorneys | USAO-MDPA | Department of Justice". justice.gov. 9 April 2015. Retrieved 2015-12-02.

External links

Active district judges of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals
Delaware
New Jersey
E. Pennsylvania
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Senior district judges of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals
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E. Pennsylvania
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NoteAmerican Samoa does not have a district court or federal territorial court; federal matters there go to the District of Columbia, Hawaii, or its own Supreme Court.
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