Jeremy D. Fogel
Encyclopedia
Jeremy Don Fogel is a former United States federal judge
for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
. An appointee of President Bill Clinton
, Fogel previously was a judge for the municipal court and superior court of Santa Clara County, California
from 1981 to 1998. On October 3, 2011, he resigned to become head of the Federal Judicial Center.
, Fogel received a B.A.
from Stanford University
in 1971 and a J.D.
from Harvard Law School
in 1974, then entered private practice in San Jose, California
until 1978. He was a lecturer in human development at San Jose State University
from 1977 to 1978 and member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association from 1978 to 1981. With the Mental Health Advocacy Project, he was a directing attorney from 1978 to 1981 and an Executive director from 1980 to 1981. Along with his judicial work, Fogel lectures at Stanford Law School
; one of his courses was "Psychology of Litigation: Practical and Ethical Implications".
governor Jerry Brown
, Fogel was a judge on the Santa Clara County Municipal Court from 1981 to 1986. Succeeding Republican
governor George Deukmejian
appointed Fogel to a judgeship at the Superior Court of Santa Clara County
in 1986; Fogel would remain until 1998. As a Superior Court judge, Fogel on November 23, 1992 allowed the East Side Union High School District
to screen Channel One News
, whose content included commercials, in classrooms provided that students who opt out receive alternative assignments. In 1997, Fogel heard a case challenging Measure B, a ballot initiative for a public transportation sales tax passed by 52 percent of voters. Challengers argued that because Measure B was a special tax (earmarked) rather than a general tax (for the general fund), a simple majority vote was insufficient. Fogel dismissed the lawsuit on April 3, 1997, two days after it opened.
on September 8, 1997, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
vacated by Robert P. Aguilar. He was confirmed by the United States Senate
on March 16, 1998, and received his commission on March 17, 1998.
Fogel has presided over federal criminal cases, including trials for perjury and fraud. In 2010, he presided over the perjury case of Federal Bureau of Investigation
employee Rachelle Thomas-Zuill, who pled guilty. On January 8, 2010, Fogel sentenced two people to federal prison for defrauding 24 Hour Fitness; one of the convicted, Susan Powell, served as a vice president of that company. Powell got 15 months, and advertising executive Michael Johnston got 5 months. On July 22, 2010, Fogel sentenced Seth Sundberg, the branch manager of a mortgage and financial business, to 71 months in prison and $2.4 million in restitution for obtaining a $5 million tax refund from the Internal Revenue Service
fraudulently. Sundberg pled guilty in January 2010 to mail fraud.
Other cases that Fogel has presided over federally included that of serial bank robber Froilan Alix Roldan, whom he sentenced to 18 years' imprisonment on September 30, 2009. Roldan robbed $90,000 a Bank of America
branch in Santa Clara, California
over three instances in three years. Judge Fogel also sentenced NASA
Ames Research Center contractor Ernst John Rohde to a five-year term for possessing child pornography on his government computer; two other Ames employees had been convicted of the same offense previously.
On October 29, 2009, Fogel awarded the Palo Alto, California
-based social networking website Facebook
$711 million in damages in a civil suit that Facebook filed against online marketer Sanford Wallace
, whom Facebook accused of using the website to send spam
to and steal personal information from website users.
because inexperienced, untrained prison staff do executions in crowded, poorly-lit settings; Fogel wrote that "implementation of lethal injection" by California "is broken, but...can be fixed." That moratorium came ten months after Fogel issued a ruling two hours prior to the scheduled February 21, 2006 execution of Michael Morales
with conditions to prevent a painful execution: instead of administering it via intravenous tube, a licensed medical professional would have to inject sodium thiopental
directly into Morales' vein. California then delayed the execution, as it could not comply with Fogel's order. Under the same painful death criteria, Fogel issued a stay of execution
for Albert Greenwood Brown
on September 28, 2010, two days before Brown was scheduled to be executed. In response to Fogel's ruling in Morales v. Tilton, The New York Times
wrote in a 2011 editorial: "For legislators in state capitols considering whether to abolish the [death] penalty...this case...has documented how lethal injection can be cruel and unusual punishment when unprofessionally administered and how the culture of prisons breeds that shoddy approach. It is one more reason to reject the death penalty as a barbaric punishment."
; their son Nate Wilcox-Fogel attended the Menlo School
and Stanford University
and played on the football teams of both schools. Wilcox-Fogel graduated from Stanford in 2009 with a degree in public policy and is now a graduate student at Stanford.
United States federal judge
In the United States, the title of federal judge usually means a judge appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate in accordance with Article II of the United States Constitution....
for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
The United States District Court for the Northern District of California is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San...
. An appointee of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, Fogel previously was a judge for the municipal court and superior court of Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
from 1981 to 1998. On October 3, 2011, he resigned to become head of the Federal Judicial Center.
Education and early career
Born in San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, Fogel received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1971 and a J.D.
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 1974, then entered private practice in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
until 1978. He was a lecturer in human development at San Jose State University
San José State University
San Jose State University is a public university located in San Jose, California, United States...
from 1977 to 1978 and member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association from 1978 to 1981. With the Mental Health Advocacy Project, he was a directing attorney from 1978 to 1981 and an Executive director from 1980 to 1981. Along with his judicial work, Fogel lectures at Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School is a graduate school at Stanford University located in the area known as the Silicon Valley, near Palo Alto, California in the United States. The Law School was established in 1893 when former President Benjamin Harrison joined the faculty as the first professor of law...
; one of his courses was "Psychology of Litigation: Practical and Ethical Implications".
County court
Appointed by DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
governor Jerry Brown
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr. is an American politician. Brown served as the 34th Governor of California , and is currently serving as the 39th California Governor...
, Fogel was a judge on the Santa Clara County Municipal Court from 1981 to 1986. Succeeding Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
governor George Deukmejian
George Deukmejian
Courken George Deukmejian, Jr. born June 6, 1928) is an Armenian American politician from California who as a Republican served as the 35th Governor of California and as California Attorney General .-Early life:...
appointed Fogel to a judgeship at the Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Superior Court of Santa Clara County
The Superior Court of Santa Clara County is the California Superior Court for Santa Clara County.-Judges:The current judges are:* Joyce Allegro* Mary Arand* Kenneth Paul Barnum* Thang Nguyen Barrett* Paul R. Bernal* Susan Bernardini* Arthur Bocanegra...
in 1986; Fogel would remain until 1998. As a Superior Court judge, Fogel on November 23, 1992 allowed the East Side Union High School District
East Side Union High School District
The East Side Union High School District administrates 18 high schools with a combined enrollment of approximately 24,500 students in the area of San Jose, Santa Clara County, California. The schools include 11 comprehensive or traditional and 7 alternative high school programs. An Adult Education...
to screen Channel One News
Channel One News
Channel One News is a 12 minute news program for teens broadcast via satellite to middle schools and high schools across the United States. Channel One is owned by Alloy Media + Marketing and based in New York City.-Program History:...
, whose content included commercials, in classrooms provided that students who opt out receive alternative assignments. In 1997, Fogel heard a case challenging Measure B, a ballot initiative for a public transportation sales tax passed by 52 percent of voters. Challengers argued that because Measure B was a special tax (earmarked) rather than a general tax (for the general fund), a simple majority vote was insufficient. Fogel dismissed the lawsuit on April 3, 1997, two days after it opened.
Federal court
Fogel was nominated by President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
on September 8, 1997, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
The United States District Court for the Northern District of California is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San...
vacated by Robert P. Aguilar. He was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on March 16, 1998, and received his commission on March 17, 1998.
Fogel has presided over federal criminal cases, including trials for perjury and fraud. In 2010, he presided over the perjury case of Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
employee Rachelle Thomas-Zuill, who pled guilty. On January 8, 2010, Fogel sentenced two people to federal prison for defrauding 24 Hour Fitness; one of the convicted, Susan Powell, served as a vice president of that company. Powell got 15 months, and advertising executive Michael Johnston got 5 months. On July 22, 2010, Fogel sentenced Seth Sundberg, the branch manager of a mortgage and financial business, to 71 months in prison and $2.4 million in restitution for obtaining a $5 million tax refund from the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
fraudulently. Sundberg pled guilty in January 2010 to mail fraud.
Other cases that Fogel has presided over federally included that of serial bank robber Froilan Alix Roldan, whom he sentenced to 18 years' imprisonment on September 30, 2009. Roldan robbed $90,000 a Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
branch in Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara , founded in 1777 and incorporated in 1852, is a city in Santa Clara County, in the U.S. state of California. The city is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asís, and was named after the mission. The Mission and Mission Gardens are located on the...
over three instances in three years. Judge Fogel also sentenced NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Ames Research Center contractor Ernst John Rohde to a five-year term for possessing child pornography on his government computer; two other Ames employees had been convicted of the same offense previously.
On October 29, 2009, Fogel awarded the Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
-based social networking website Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
$711 million in damages in a civil suit that Facebook filed against online marketer Sanford Wallace
Sanford Wallace
Sanford "Spamford" Wallace came to notoriety in 1997, promoting himself as the original Spam King. Wallace's prolific spamming has resulted in encounters with the United States government, anti-spam activists, and large corporations such as Facebook and MySpace...
, whom Facebook accused of using the website to send spam
Spam
Spam may refer to:* Spam , a canned pork meat product* Spam , unsolicited or undesired electronic messages* E-mail spam, unsolicited or undesired email messages* "Spam" , a comedy sketch...
to and steal personal information from website users.
California execution moratorium
On December 15, 2006, in the case Morales v. Tilton, Judge Fogel ruled that California execution procedures violate the Eighth Amendment to the United States ConstitutionEighth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights which prohibits the federal government from imposing excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that this amendment's Cruel and Unusual...
because inexperienced, untrained prison staff do executions in crowded, poorly-lit settings; Fogel wrote that "implementation of lethal injection" by California "is broken, but...can be fixed." That moratorium came ten months after Fogel issued a ruling two hours prior to the scheduled February 21, 2006 execution of Michael Morales
Michael Morales
Michael Angelo Morales is a convicted murderer who was scheduled to be executed by the State of California at 7:30 p.m. on February 21, 2006...
with conditions to prevent a painful execution: instead of administering it via intravenous tube, a licensed medical professional would have to inject sodium thiopental
Sodium thiopental
Sodium thiopental, better known as Sodium Pentothal , thiopental, thiopentone sodium, or Trapanal , is a rapid-onset short-acting barbiturate general anaesthetic...
directly into Morales' vein. California then delayed the execution, as it could not comply with Fogel's order. Under the same painful death criteria, Fogel issued a stay of execution
Stay of execution
A stay of execution is a court order to temporarily suspend the execution of a court judgment or other court order. The word "execution" does not necessarily mean the death penalty; it refers to the imposition of whatever judgment is being stayed....
for Albert Greenwood Brown
Albert Greenwood Brown
Albert Greenwood Brown, Jr. is an American convicted of sexual molestation of a minor, two counts of rape, and the murder of an adolescent in Riverside, California. He was scheduled to die by lethal injection at 9 p.m. on September 30, 2010 in California's first use of capital punishment...
on September 28, 2010, two days before Brown was scheduled to be executed. In response to Fogel's ruling in Morales v. Tilton, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote in a 2011 editorial: "For legislators in state capitols considering whether to abolish the [death] penalty...this case...has documented how lethal injection can be cruel and unusual punishment when unprofessionally administered and how the culture of prisons breeds that shoddy approach. It is one more reason to reject the death penalty as a barbaric punishment."
Personal life
Fogel married preschool teacher Kathleen Aim Wilcox and lived in Los Altos, CaliforniaLos Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
; their son Nate Wilcox-Fogel attended the Menlo School
Menlo School
Menlo School, also referred to simply as Menlo, is an independent college preparatory school in Atherton, California, near the heart of Silicon Valley. Menlo comprises a middle school that includes grades 6–8 and a high school that includes grades 9–12...
and Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and played on the football teams of both schools. Wilcox-Fogel graduated from Stanford in 2009 with a degree in public policy and is now a graduate student at Stanford.