Janis Lynn Sammartino is a District Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of California

United States District Court for the Southern District of California

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties in California: Imperial and San Diego. In terms of filed indictments, it is one of the busiest criminal districts in the United States...

. She joined the court in 2007 after being nominated by President George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

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Early life and education

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, Sammartino graduated from Occidental College

Occidental College

Occidental College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887, Occidental College, or "Oxy" as it is called by students and alumni, is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges on the West Coast...

 with her Bachelor's degree in 1972 and later from Notre Dame Law School

Notre Dame Law School

The Notre Dame Law School, or NDLS, is the professional graduate law program of its parent institution, the University of Notre Dame. Established in 1869, NDLS is the oldest Roman Catholic law school in the United States. NDLS is ranked 22nd among the nation's "Top 100 Law Schools" by U.S. News &...

 with a Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 degree in 1975.

Legal career

Following law school graduation, Sammartino worked as a law clerk

Law clerk

A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a judge in researching issues before the court and in writing opinions. Law clerks are not court clerks or courtroom deputies, who are administrative staff for the court. Most law clerks are recent law school graduates who...

 for Indiana Superior Court Judge Douglas Seely for St. Joseph County, Indiana

St. Joseph County, Indiana

As of the census of 2000, there were 265,559 people, 100,743 households, and 66,792 families residing in the county. The population density was 581 people per square mile . There were 107,013 housing units at an average density of 234 per square mile...

 from 1975 to 1976. She was a Deputy city attorney of San Diego City Attorney's Office, California from 1976 to 1994. Sammartino was a judge on the Municipal Court of the City of San Diego, California from 1994 to 1995. She was a judge on the Superior Court of San Diego County, California from 1995 to 2007.

Federal Judicial Career

Sammartino was nominated to the United States District Court for the Southern District of California by President George W. Bush on March 19, 2007 to a seat vacated Judith Nelsen Keep. Sammartino was confirmed by the Senate

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

on September 10, 2007 on a Senate vote and received commission on September 21, 2007.