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Vicki Miles-LaGrange
2018 - Present
6
Vicki Miles-LaGrange is a federal judge on senior status on the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. She joined the court in 1994 after being nominated by President Bill Clinton (D). She assumed senior status November 5, 2018.
Miles-LaGrange served as the chief judge of the district court from 2008 to 2015.
Early life and education
A native of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Miles-LaGrange attended the University of Ghana before graduating with her bachelor's degree in 1974 from Vassar College. Miles-LaGrange graduated from Howard University School of Law with her J.D. in 1977.[1]
Professional career
- 1994-2018: Judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma
- 2008-2015: Chief judge
- 1993-1994: U.S. Attorney, Western District of Oklahoma
- 1987-1993: State senator, Oklahoma State Senate
- 1986-1993: Private practice, Oklahoma City, Okla.
- 1983-1986: Assistant district attorney, Oklahoma County, Okla.
- 1982-1983: Trial attorney, office of enforcement operations, U.S. Department of Justice
- 1981: Lecturer, women's studies program, University of Maryland
- 1980-1981: Special Assistant, African Development Group, Washington, D.C.
- 1979-1980: Graduate fellow, criminal division, U.S. Department of Justice
- 1977-1979: Law clerk, Hon. Woodrow Seals, United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas[1]
Judicial career
Western District of Oklahoma
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Vicki Miles-LaGrange |
| Court: United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 15 days after nomination. |
 Nominated: September 22, 1994
|
| ABA Rating: Substantial Majority Qualified, Minority Well Qualified
|
| Questionnaire: |
| Hearing: October 4, 1994
|
| QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| Reported: October 5, 1994
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| Confirmed: October 7, 1994
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| Vote: Voice vote
|
President Bill Clinton (D) nominated Miles-LaGrange on September 22, 1994, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma vacated by Lee West. The American Bar Association rated Miles-LaGrange Substantial Majority Qualified, Minority Well Qualified for the nomination. The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on the nomination October 4. Then-U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) reported the nomination October 5. The U.S. Senate confirmed Miles-LaGrange on a voice vote October 7. She received her commission on November 28. She retired, assuming senior status, November 5, 2018.[2][3][1]
Miles-LaGrange served as the chief judge of the district court from 2008 to 2015.[1]
Noteworthy cases
Islamic Sharia law (2012-2013)
- See also: United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (Awad v. Ziriax et al, 5:2010cv01186)
- See also: United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (Awad v. Ziriax et al, 5:2010cv01186)
Following a statewide general election in 2010, Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange issued a temporary restraining order blocking certification of the election results related to Oklahoma State Question 755.
State Question 755 passed with 70.08 percent of the vote on November 2, 2010. The amendment would have prevented state courts from using international law and Sharia law when deciding a case.[4]
Muneer Awad filed a lawsuit alleging the amendment was unconstitutional. Miles-LaGrange agreed and issued a temporary injunction against the amendment, pending the state's appeal. On January 10, 2012, the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit affirmed Miles-LaGrange's ruling.[5]
In August of 2013, Judge Miles-LaGrange made the injunction permanent. In her order she stated:
| “ | Because the Court has found that the Sharia law provisions of the amendment are unconstitutional, the court finds that the balance of harms weighs even more in favor of plaintiffs' having their constitutional rights protected.[6][7] | ” |
See also
- United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma
- United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Federal Judicial Center, "Biography of Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange," accessed June 5, 2017
- ↑ United States Congress, "PN 1799 — Vicki Miles-LaGrange — The Judiciary," accessed June 5, 2017
- ↑ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III judicial nominees, 103rd Congress," accessed June 5, 2017
- ↑ Oklahoma Watchdog, "Shariah-free state? Activist judge puts will of the people on hold," November 8, 2010
- ↑ U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Awad v. Ziriax et al., January 10, 2012
- ↑ NewsOK, "U.S. judge permanently bans Oklahoma Islamic law vote," August 15, 2013
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Lee West |
Western District of Oklahoma 1994–2018 |
Succeeded by: Jodi Dishman
|
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 |
Adams • Ambrose • Barnes • Brinkema • Bucklew • Chasanow • Coffman • Daughtrey • Ferguson • Ginsburg • Hagen • Jackson • Lancaster • Leval • Lindsay • Messitte • Michael • Piersol • Saris • Schwartz • Seybert • Shanahan • Shaw • Stearns • Trager • Vazquez • Wilken • Wilson | ||
| 1994 |
Baer • Barkett • Batts • Beaty • Benavides • Bennett • Berrigan • Biery • Block • Borman • Breyer • Briones • Bryson • Bucklo • Burgess • Burrage • Cabranes • Calabresi • Carr • Casellas • Castillo • Chatigny • Chin • Cindrich • Coar • Collins • Cooper • Cote • Currie • Davis • Dominguez • Downes • Duval • Friedman • Furgeson • Garcia • Gertner • Gettleman • Gillmor • Gilmore • Gleeson • Haggerty • Hamilton • Hannah • Hawkins • Henry • Holmes • Hood • Hull • Hurley • Jack • Jones • Jones • Kaplan • Katz • Kern • Kessler • Koeltl • Lisi • Manning • McKee • McLaughlin • Melancon • Miles-LaGrange • Moore • Motz • Murphy • O'Malley • O'Meara • Oliver • Paez • B. Parker • F. Parker • R. Parker • Perry • Ponsor • Pooler • Porteous • Rendell • Riley • Robertson • Rogers • Ross • Russell • Sands • Sarokin • Scheindlin • Silver • Squatrito • Stewart • Sullivan • Tatel • Thompson • Timlin • Urbina • Vanaskie • Vance • Walls • Wells • Williams | ||
| 1995 |
Arterton • Atlas • Black • Blake • Briscoe • Tena Campbell • Todd Campbell • Chesney • Cole • Collier • Daniel • Davis • Dennis • Dlott • Donald • Duffy • Economus • Evans • Fallon • Folsom • Gaughan • Goodwin • Heartfield • Hunt • Illston • Jones • King • Kornmann • Lawson • Lenard • Lucero • Lynch • McKinley • Moody • Moore • Moskowitz • Murphy • Murtha • Nugent • O'Toole • Orlofsky • Pogue • Sessions • C. Smith • O. Smith • Stein • Thornburg • Tunheim • Wallach • Wardlaw • Webber • Whaley • Winmill • Wood | ||
| 1996 |
Broadwater • Clevert • Fenner • Gershon • Gottschall • Greenaway • Hinkle • Jones • Kahn • Laughrey • Lemmon • Marten • Miller • Molloy • Montgomery • Pregerson • Rakoff • Sargus • Tashima • Thomas • Zapata | ||
| 1997 |
Adelman • Bataillon • Breyer • Caputo • Casey • Chambers • Clay • Damrell • Droney • Friedman • Gajarsa • Garland • Gilman • Gold • Gwin • Hall • Hayden • Hull • Ishii • Jenkins • Kauffman • Kennedy • Kimball • Kollar-Kotelly • Lazzara • Marbley • Marcus • Middlebrooks • Miller • Moon • Pratt • Rendell • Sippel • Siragusa • Snyder • Thrash | ||
| 1998 |
Aiken • Barbier • Barzilay • Berman • Buttram • Carter • Collins • Dawson • Dimitrouleas • Fletcher • Fogel • Frank • Graber • Hellerstein • Herndon • James • Johnson • Kane • Kelly • G. King • R. King • Lasnik • Lee • Lemelle • Lindsay • Lipez • Manella • Matz • McCuskey • McKeown • McMahon • Mickle • Mollway • Mordue • Moreno • Morrow • Munley • Murphy • Pallmeyer • Pauley • Polster • Pooler • Rawlinson • Ridgway • R. Roberts • V. Roberts • Sack • Scott • Seitz • Seymour • Shea • Silverman • Sleet • Sotomayor • Steeh • Story • Straub • Tagle • Tarnow • Trauger • Traxler • Tyson • Wardlaw • Whelan • Young | ||
| 1999 |
Alsup • Barry • Brown • Buchwald • Cooper • Eaton • Ellison • Feess • Fisher • Gould • Guzman • Haynes • Hibbler • Hochberg • Hurd • Huvelle • Jordan • Katzmann • Kennelly • Linn • Lorenz • Lynn • Marrero • Murguia • Pannell • Pechman • Pepper • Phillips • Schreier • Stewart • Underhill • Ward • Williams • Wilson | ||
| 2000 |
Ambro • Antoon • Battani • Berzon • Bolton • Brady • Bye • Cavanaugh • Daniels • Darrah • Dawson • Dyk • Fuentes • Garaufis • Garcia-Gregory • Hamilton • Huck • Hunt • Lawson • Lefkow • Lynch • Martin • McLaughlin • Moody • Murguia • Paez • Pisano • Presnell • Rawlinson • Reagan • Schiller • Singal • Steele • Surrick • Swain • Tallman • Teilborg • Tucker • Whittemore | ||
Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Oklahoma, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Oklahoma, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma
State courts:
Oklahoma Supreme Court • Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals • Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals • Oklahoma District Courts • Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Court of Existing Claims
State resources:
Courts in Oklahoma • Oklahoma judicial elections • Judicial selection in Oklahoma
