Halil Suleyman Ozerden
{{Short description|American judge (born 1966)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Sul Ozerden
| honorific-suffix =
| image = Halil S. Ozerden (cropped).jpg
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| caption =
| office = Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
| term_start = November 4, 2024
| term_end =
| predecessor = Daniel P. Jordan III
| successor =
| office1 = Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
| term_start1 = May 1, 2007
| term_end1 =
| appointer1 = George W. Bush
| predecessor1 = David C. Bramlette
| successor1 =
| pronunciation =
| birth_name = Halil Suleyman Ozerden
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1966|12|05}}
| birth_place = Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
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| education = {{nowrap|Georgetown University (BS)}}
Stanford University (JD)
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| allegiance = {{flag|United States}}
| branch = {{navy|United States|size=23px}}
| rank = 23px Lieutenant
| battles = Operation Restore Hope
| serviceyears = 1989–1995
| mawards = {{collapsible list
|titlestyle= background:transparent;text-align:left;font-weight:normal;
|title= See list
|23px Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal
23px Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal
23px Joint Meritorious Unit Award
23px Southwest Asia Service Medal
23px Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
23px National Defense Service Medal
23px Navy and Marine Corps Sea Service Ribbon (with Bronze Star Device)
}}
}}
Halil Suleyman "Sul" Ozerden ({{langx|tr|Halil Süleyman Özerden}}; born December 5, 1966) is the chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi and a former nominee to be a circuit judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Early life and education
Ozerden was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi to a Turkish family. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service at Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service. Sul was a four-year Navy ROTC scholarship student, serving as battalion executive officer (1989). Upon receiving his commission as a naval officer, he completed United States Navy Flight School in Pensacola, Florida, from 1989 to 1990, and was designated a naval flight officer. Ozerden obtained his Juris Doctor in 1998 from Stanford Law School, and served as associate editor for the Stanford Law Review.
Military Service
Ozerden served as a commissioned officer in the United States Navy from 1989 to 1995. His military service included: naval flight officer/bombardier-navigator, A-6E Intruder; over 1,000 flight hours; mission commander qualified; two six-month Western Pacific deployments aboard the USS Kitty Hawk; head of Safety Department; Navy Commendation Medal for missions flown in Operation Restore Hope (Somalia) and Operation Southern Watch (Iraq); and the Navy Achievement Medal. He was honorably discharged with the rank of lieutenant (O-3).{{Cite web |title=Ozerden, Halil Suleyman {{!}} Federal Judicial Center |url=https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/ozerden-halil-suleyman |access-date=2024-11-27 |website=www.fjc.gov}}{{Cite web |title=First Turkish American United States District Judge |url=https://www.tc-america.org/community/first-turkish-american-united-states-district-judge-108.htm |access-date=2024-11-27 |website=www.tc-america.org}}
Legal Career
Ozerden began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge Eldon E. Fallon of the Eastern District of Louisiana from 1998 to 1999 and also served as a private practice attorney licensed in Mississippi from 1999 to 2007.
=Federal judicial service=
On the recommendation of United States Senators Thad Cochran and Trent Lott, President George W. Bush nominated Ozerden to be a United States district judge of the Southern District of Mississippi on January 8, 2007. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 24, 2007 by a 95–0 vote.{{Cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1101/vote_110_1_00136.htm|title=On the Nomination (Confirmation Halil Suleyman Ozerden, of Mississippi, to be U.S. District Judge)|date=April 24, 2007|website=United States Senate|access-date=April 14, 2023}} He received his commission on May 1, 2007.{{FJC Bio|nid=1392561|inline=yes}} He became chief judge on November 4, 2024.{{Cite press release |title=Chief District Judge Sul Ozerden |date=November 4, 2024 |publisher=United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi |url=https://www.mssd.uscourts.gov/news/chief-district-judge-sul-ozerden |access-date=November 5, 2024}}
In 2023, Ozerden sided with a lawsuit filed by an anti-vaccine group to overturn Mississippi's long-standing and strict vaccination requirements. Ozerden forced Mississippi to allow parents to decline vaccinations for their children on religious grounds. At the time, Mississippi law had since 1979 not allowed parents to exempt their children from vaccinations, except for medical reasons. This had resulted in Mississippi having one of the highest vaccination rates in the United States, with 99% of kindergarteners being immunized.{{Cite web |date=2023-12-16 |title=How a well-timed legal assault unraveled Mississippi’s stellar record in vaccinating kids |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/mississippi-anti-vaccine-religious-exemptions-school-public-health-rcna130004 |website=NBC News |language=en}}
= Failed nomination to appellate court =
On June 11, 2019, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Ozerden to serve as a United States circuit judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/president-donald-j-trump-announces-judicial-nominees-3/ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Judicial Nominees" White House, June 11, 2019] {{PD-notice}} On June 24, 2019, his nomination was sent to the Senate. He was nominated to the seat vacated by E. Grady Jolly, who assumed senior status on October 3, 2017.[https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/thirteen-nominations-one-withdrawal-sent-senate/ "Thirteen Nominations and One Withdrawal Sent to the Senate", White House, June 24, 2019] On July 17, 2019, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/07/17/2019/nominations "Nominations", United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for July 17, 2019] On September 12, 2019, Senator Ted Cruz announced his opposition to the nomination.{{Cite web |url=https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/12/ted-cruz-halil-sul-ozerden-nomination-1492305 |title=Ted Cruz will oppose Trump's judicial nominee |last1=Everett |first1=Burgess |last2=Levine |first2=Marianne |website=POLITICO |language=en |access-date=2019-09-13 |last3=Johnson |first3=Eliana|date=12 September 2019 }} The Judiciary Committee was scheduled to vote on recommending Ozerden on September 26, 2019, but the vote was postponed after Senator Josh Hawley joined Ted Cruz in his opposition to Ozerden's elevation to the court of appeals.{{Cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/26/josh-hawley-judicial-nominee-1513793|title=Senate Judiciary shelves vote on Trump judicial pick after conservative opposition|date=September 26, 2019|publisher=Politico|access-date=September 26, 2019|language=en}} On January 3, 2020, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate.{{Cite web |url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/116th-congress/896 |title=PN896 - Nomination of Halil Suleyman Ozerden for The Judiciary, 116th Congress (2019–2020) |date=2020-01-03 |website=www.congress.gov |access-date=2020-01-04}}
Memberships
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{FJC Bio|nid=1392561}}
- [https://www.mssd.uscourts.gov/content/district-judge-sul-ozerden District Judge Sul Ozerden]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090514045249/http://www.justice.gov/olp/ozerdenresume.htm Justice Department resume]
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{{s-legal}}
{{s-bef|before=David C. Bramlette}}
{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi}}|years=2007–present}}
{{s-inc|rows=2}}
{{s-bef|before=Daniel P. Jordan III}}
{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi}}|years=2024–present}}
{{s-end}}
{{United States 5th Circuit district judges}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ozerden, Halil Suleyman}}
Category:20th-century American lawyers
Category:21st-century American lawyers
Category:American people of Turkish descent
Category:Georgetown University alumni
Category:Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
Category:Military personnel from Mississippi
Category:People from Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Category:Stanford Law School alumni
Category:United States district court judges appointed by George W. Bush
Category:United States Navy officers