Appointed by George W. Bush Preceded by New seat | Name Ricardo Martinez Role Judge | |
Alma mater University of Washington Education University of Washington School of Law, University of Washington | ||
2018 Charles E. Odegaard Award Recipient, The Honorable Ricardo S. Martinez
Ricardo Salazar Martinez (born 1951) is the Chief United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.
Contents
- 2018 Charles E Odegaard Award Recipient The Honorable Ricardo S Martinez
- Early life and education
- Judicial service
- Notable Cases
- References
Early life and education
Martinez was born in Mercedes, Texas, and raised in Whatcom County, Washington, where he graduated from Lynden High School. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Washington in 1975 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Washington School of Law in 1980. He was an Assistant Prosecutor with the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office in King County, Washington, from 1980 to 1990.
Judicial service
Martinez was a judge on the King County Superior Court from 1990 to 1998. From 1998 to 2004, he served as a United States Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.
On October 14, 2003, Martinez was nominated by President George W. Bush to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington established by 104 Stat. 5089. Martinez was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 15, 2004, receiving his commission on June 16, 2004. He is the first Latino judge in the Western District of Washington. He became Chief Judge on February 6, 2016.
Notable Cases
Backpage.com, an online escort service, filed a lawsuit against Washington State to prevent a law that would require companies to verify the ages of people in sex-related advertisements. The online escort service claimed, "Backpage and Internet Archive argue the new law violates the Communications Decency Act of 1996, as well as the First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments and the commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution." On 28 July 2012, Judge Martinez granted an injunction preventing the law from taking effect. In his ruling, Martinez found merit in some of Backpage.com's arguments that the state law would conflict with existing federal law.