December 20, 2023 |
Photo – 1994 Photo of Judge Kelly Rankin – Courtesy University of Wyoming College of Law
On Thursday, President Joe Biden nominated Judge Kelly Rankin for the U.S. District Court in Wyoming.
Judge Rankin will replace Nancy Freudenthal, who has been in a phase of semi-retirement for much of the last year. By stepping down, Freudenthal opens a seat on the three-person district court for the first time since President Barack Obama appointed her and Chief Justice Scott Skavdahl more than a decade ago.
Judge Rankin is connected to former Governor Dave Freudenthal’s administration. Judge Rankin served as counsel to the governor in 2010. Judge Rankin also served as Criminal Chief in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Wyoming from 2010 to 2012.
U.S. Senator John Barrasso called Rankin’s selection to the U.S. District Court “an outstanding choice.”
Senator Barrasso wrote in statement that Judge Rankin “had dedicated his career to serving the people of Wyoming and upholding the Constitution. Judge Nancy Freudenthal leaves an incredible legacy that is hard to follow, but I’m confident Judge Rankin is up to the challenge.”
Wyoming’s junior senator also praised the selection. “Judge Rankin has honorably served the state of Wyoming for decades and has dedicated his life to public service,” Lummis said in a statement.
The U.S. Senate must approve the selection.
Judge Rankin received his J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law in 1994 and his B.S. from the University of Wyoming in 1990.
Rankin was included in President Biden’s forty-third round of nominees for federal judicial positions, bringing the number of announced federal judicial nominees to 209 since taking office.
