David O. Carter

The Honorable David O. Carter
Judge for the United States District Court for the Central District of California
Incumbent
Assumed office October 22, 1998
Nominated by	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	William J. Rea
Personal details
Born	March 28, 1944 Providence, Rhode Island

David O. Carter (born 1944 in Providence, Rhode Island) is a United States District Court Judge for the Central District of California.

Biography

Carter is a "Double Bruin," having received both his bachelor's degree (B.A. 1967) and his law degree (J.D. 1972) from the University of California, Los Angeles. Carter graduated cum laude and was a candidate for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship in 1967.

After graduating from college, Carter enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1967. He was promptly dispatched into service in Vietnam during the Vietnam War where he fought in the Battle of Khe Sahn in 1968. Carter was released as a First Lieutenant following his service in Vietnam. His military awards and decorations include a Bronze Star Medal and a Purple Heart.

Carter began his legal career as an Assistant District Attorney with the Orange County District Attorney's Office in 1972 where he later served as Chief of the Orange County District Attorney's Homicide Division. As a prosecutor, Carter was the initial prosecutor and filed charges in the case of serial killer William Bonin, also known as "The Freeway Killer," who became the first person executed by lethal injection in California in 1996.

In addition to his judicial functions, Carter now performs a wide array of speaking engagements. He has lectured fellow judges through the California Judges College, the Judicial Criminal Law Institute, and the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. He also speaks frequently with judges abroad, including past engagements in Brazil, Bosnia, China, The Philipines, and Malawi. Carter finally teaches an undergraduate course on the international narcotics trade at the University of California, Irvine, where he has three times received the school's Distinguished Professors Award, and has taught with the Whittier Law School's Summer Abroad Program.

Judicial Career

Orange County Superior Court

In 1981, Carter joined the bench as a Municipal Court Judge in Orange County, California. One year later, he became an Orange County Superior Judge, a position that he held until joining the federal judiciary in 1998. Carter initiated a variety of programs to assist in the rehabilitation of convicted felons, including a tattoo removal program for gang members, and was active in planning the county's Law Day festivities. He earned the nickname "King David" from attorneys while serving as the Supervising Judge of the court's Criminal Division.

United States District Court

Carter was nominated by President Bill Clinton on June 25, 1998 to fill a seat vacated by William J. Rea, and received confirmation from the United States Senate on October 21, 1998. He now sits in the Southern Division of the Central District of Calfornia in Orange County, California. His courtroom deputy clerk is Kristee Hopkins.

As a jurist, Carter is known for his acute intellect, courteous judicial demeanor, tireless work ethic, and expertise in complex criminal litigation. Although he is assigned to the Central District of California, Carter also regularly sits by designation in the District of Idaho and on occasion with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and in the District of Guam.

Law Clerks

Since joining the federal bench, Carter has hired two term law clerks per year. Carter's clerks start on staggered dates, such that one starts in August and the other starts in October.

Term	August	October
1998-1999	Thomas J. Noguerola	Robert W. Mockler
1999-2000	Lisa M. Greenwald	Kevin Deeley
2000-2001	Rebecca S. Engrav	Catherine D. Whiting
2001-2002	Lee K. Fink	Wendy C. Houle
2002-2003	Matthew V. Johnson	Michelle S. Mehta
2003-2004	James P. Fellers	Bonita D. Moore
2004-2005	Marissa W. Grimes	Khaldoun "Kal" Shobaki
2005-2006	Lisa Ells	Darren S. Teshima
2006-2007	Douglas J. Brown	Alyssa M.Q. Soares

Notable cases

Aryan Brotherhood

Carter has been heavily involved in the proceedings arising from the 2002 indictment on racketeering charges of forty alleged members of the Aryan Brotherhood ("AB"), a notorious prison gang. This indictment alleges that the AB ordered thirty-two murders over a twenty-three year period and charges forty-one AB gang members and associates with violations of the federal RICO Act. Twenty-six defendants were eligible for the death penalty, making this the largest capital indictment in federal history.

Twenty of the defendants charged in the indictment were assigned to Carter, including two of the three commissioners of the AB's federal faction, Barry "The Baron" Mills and Tyler "The Hulk" Bingham. Following a six-month trial, a jury convicted both Mills and Bingham of committing Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering (VICAR) and murder. The jury deadlocked on the death penalty, and both have been sentenced and are now serving life terms at ADX Florence, the federal system's sole supermax facility.

The trials of several remaining defendants are currently ongoing before Carter and other judges in the Central District of California.

External links

• Federal Judicial Center, David O. Carter, retrieved 2007-06-22
• Judges' Procedures and Schedules: Hon. David O. Carter, FJC, retrieved 2007-06-22

Categories:1944_births,American_jurists