California Black Media

Biden Appoints Black San Diego Attorney to California District Court Judgeship

On Oct. 23, President Joe Biden nominated two judges to vacant federal judgeships in Southern California: Judge Serena Murillo and Judge Benjamin Cheeks. Both appointments are subject to U.S. Senate confirmation next month.

Published

1 year ago

November 4, 2024

Oakland Post

On Oct. 23, President Joe Biden nominated Judge Benjamin Cheeks to California Federal District Court Judgeship.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

On Oct. 23, President Joe Biden nominated two judges to vacant federal judgeships in Southern California: Judge Serena Murillo and Judge Benjamin Cheeks.

Both appointments are subject to U.S. Senate confirmation next month.

If confirmed, Cheeks, who is African American and a criminal defense attorney, will replace U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel. Before his appointment, Cheeks was 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, Cheeks served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California.

The same day of the White House announcement, California’s U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler, both Democrats, and members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, congratulated Murillo and Cheeks and commended Biden on his decision.

“I applaud President Biden for his continued commitment to nominating highly qualified, diverse judges to serve California,” said Padilla in a statement.

“Judge Cheeks has earned immense respect from his colleagues in the Southern District and has fought to protect vulnerable immigrants against fraud,” Padilla added.

Butler said, “Californians deserve a federal bench that reflects the diversity of the Golden State.

“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,” she continued.

Murillo, who 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. She received her J.D. from Loyola Law School in 1996 and her B.A. from the University of California, San Diego in 1993.

Cheeks earned his J.D. from the American University, Washington College of Law in 2003 and his B.A. from the University of Miami in Florida in 2000.

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Oakland Post: Week of December 17 – 23, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – December 17 – 23, 2025

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3 days ago

December 20, 2025

Oakland Post

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2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Black Women’s Think Tank Founder Kellie Todd Griffin

As the president and CEO of the California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute, Griffin is on a mission to shift the narrative and outcomes for Black women and girls. She founded the nation’s first Black Women’s Think Tank, securing $5 million in state funding to fuel policy change.

Published

1 week ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Kellie Todd Griffin. CBM file photo.

By Edward Henderson
California Black Media

With more than 25 years of experience spanning public affairs, community engagement, strategy, marketing, and communications, Kellie Todd Griffin is recognized across California as a leader who mobilizes people and policy around issues that matter.

Griffin spoke with California Black Media (CBM) about her successes and setbacks in 2025 and her hopes for 2026.

Looking back at 2025, what stands out to you as your most important achievement and why? 

Our greatest achievement in this year is we got an opportunity to honor the work of 35 Black women throughout California who are trailblazing the way for the next generation of leaders.

How did your leadership, efforts and investments as president and CEO California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute contribute to improving the lives of Black Californians? 

We’re training the next leaders. We have been able to train 35 women over a two-year period, and we’re about to start a new cohort of another 30 women. We also have trained over 500 middle and high school girls in leadership, advocacy, and financial literacy.

What frustrated you the most over the last year?

Getting the question, “why.” Why advocate for Black women? Why invest in Black people, Black communities? It’s always constantly having to explain that, although we are aware that there are other populations that are in great need, the quality-of-life indices for Black Californians continue to decrease. Our life expectancies are decreasing. Our unhoused population is increasing. Our health outcomes remain the worst.

We’re not asking anyone to choose one group to prioritize. We are saying, though, in addition to your investments into our immigrant brothers and sisters – or our religious brothers and sisters – we are also asking you to uplift the needs of Black Californians. That way, all of us can move forward together.

What inspired you the most over the last year?

I’ve always been amazed by the joy of Black women in the midst of crisis.

That is really our secret sauce. We don’t let the current state of any issue take our joy from us. It may break us a little bit. We may get tired a little bit. But we find ways to express that – through the arts, through music, through poetry.

What is one lesson you learned in 2025 that will inform your decision-making next year?

Reset. It’s so important not to be sitting still. We have a new administration. We’re seeing data showing that Black women have the largest unemployment rate. We’ve lost so many jobs. We can have rest – we can be restful – but we have to continue the resistance.

In one word, what is the biggest challenge Black Californians faced in 2025?

Motivation.

I choose motivation because of the tiredness. What is going to motivate us to be involved in 2026?

What is the goal you want to achieve most in 2026?

I want to get Black Californians in spaces and places of power and influence – as well as opportunities to thrive economically, socially, and physically.