Padilla, Butler Applaud Two Nominations for California-Based Federal Judgeships
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler (both D-Calif.), members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, applauded President Biden’s and Vice President Harris’ nomination of Judge Serena Murillo and Judge Benjamin Cheeks to fill vacancies on the U.S. District Courts for the Central District and Southern District of California, respectively.
“Judge Murillo and Judge Cheeks hold a wealth of litigation experience, with longstanding commitments to justice and deep roots in the Southern California legal community,” said Senator Padilla. “The daughter of a Mexican-American farm worker and a schoolteacher, Judge Murillo has demonstrated a tireless work ethic and developed extensive criminal and civil judicial experience with the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Judge Cheeks has earned immense respect from his colleagues in the Southern District and has fought to protect vulnerable immigrants against fraud. I applaud President Biden for his continued commitment to nominating highly qualified, diverse judges to serve California.”
“Californians deserve a federal bench that reflects the diversity of the Golden State,” said Senator Butler. “I applaud the President’s nomination of Judge Serena Murillo and Judge Ben Cheeks to the United States District Courts for the Central District and Southern District of California, respectively. These two incredibly qualified candidates bring a breadth of both judicial and lived experienced to the federal bench, and I look forward to supporting their paths to confirmation.”
Senator Padilla is committed to rebuilding a federal judiciary that better reflects and is receptive to the America it serves. Within weeks of being sworn into the Senate, one of Padilla’s first initiatives was to establish a Judicial Evaluation Commission that is majority attorneys of color and women to evaluate candidates for federal judicial vacancies in California. Earlier this year, Padilla highlighted the importance of federal judicial diversity of race, gender, as well as legal and professional experience during an event hosted by The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Senator Padilla has worked closely with the Biden-Harris Administration to recommend and support the nominations of highly qualified, outstanding judges to the federal courts.
Judge Serena Murillo: Nominee for the United States District Court for the Central District of California
Judge Serena Murillo has been a judge on the Los Angeles Superior Court since 2015. She also served by appointment of the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court as an Associate Justice pro tem on the California Court of Appeal from 2018 to 2019. Prior to joining the bench, Judge Murillo served as a Deputy District Attorney in the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office from 1997 to 2014. Earlier in her career, she worked as an associate attorney at McNicholas & McNicholas in Los Angeles in 1997 and as a law clerk at Shernoff, Bidart, and Echeverria in Claremont, California in 1996. Judge Murillo received her J.D. from Loyola Law School in 1996 and her B.A. from the University of California, San Diego in 1993.
Judge Benjamin Cheeks: Nominee for the United States District Court for the Southern District of California
Judge Benjamin J. Cheeks has been a United States Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California since July 2024. Prior to joining the bench, Judge Cheeks was a criminal defense lawyer in private practice at the Law Offices of Benjamin J. Cheeks, A.P.C. in San Diego from 2013 to 2024. From 2010 to 2013, Judge Cheeks served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. Earlier in his career, he served as an Assistant District Attorney in the New York County District Attorney’s Office from 2003 to 2010. Judge Cheeks received his J.D. from the American University, Washington College of Law in 2003 and his B.A. from the University of Miami, Florida in 2000.
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