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

2 years 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 July 15 – 21, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 15 – 21, 2026

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July 18, 2026

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Oakland Post: Week of July 8 – 14, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 8 – 14, 2026

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July 12, 2026

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Kamala Harris Says State and Local Leadership Matters as Much as Washington

The discussion was moderated by Daniel Squadron, co-founder of The States Project and author of The Fourth Branch: How State Government Can Save Our Union. The organization supports state legislative candidates in competitive states and advocates for greater investment in state legislative races. 

Published

3 weeks ago

July 5, 2026

Oakland Post

Courtesy photo States Project.

By Joe W. Bowers Jr., California Black Media 

Former Vice President Kamala Harris said that traveling the country since the 2024 Presidential election, during her book tour, gave her an opportunity to hear directly from Americans about the challenges they face every day, reinforcing her belief that many people feel unheard by Washington and increasingly look to state elected officials for solutions.

Speaking at UCLA on June 23 during a discussion hosted by The States Project, Harris said she deliberately used her travels to spend time listening to people rather than simply talking to them.

“After the election I needed to take a minute, but when that minute was over, I needed to listen,” said Harris.

One conversation that stayed with her was with a single mother of three in Jackson, Mississippi, who was attending cosmetology school while raising her children on a $150 weekly grocery budget. Harris said the woman also told her the tap water was sometimes too contaminated to bathe her children.

When Harris asked what she wanted others to understand about families like hers, the woman replied, “Don’t they see me?”

“There are a lot of people who feel that they are not interested, and that their everyday fears and worries and hopes aren’t being heard,” Harris said.

“People are done with the status quo,” Harris added. “They’re done. It’s not working for them.”

She said political leaders must focus on solving everyday problems while presenting a broader vision for the country’s future.

“It’s about having affordable housing, affordable healthcare. It is about having a tax code that works for working people,” Harris said.

Harris said those conversations reinforced her belief that state elected officials are often better positioned than Washington to understand the everyday challenges facing their constituents.

“I support The States Project because the folks here and the folks we are supporting — state elected officials — are on the ground seeing and hearing these stories every day,” Harris said.

The discussion was moderated by Daniel Squadron, co-founder of The States Project and author of The Fourth Branch: How State Government Can Save Our Union. The organization supports state legislative candidates in competitive states and advocates for greater investment in state legislative races.

Harris said protecting voting rights remains central to the broader civil rights movement.

“The fight for civil rights in America, born out of the struggle of Black Americans, has benefited so many groups,” she said. “But when we look at what’s happening across the country, the fight for justice, for equality, lives on.”

Looking beyond the current administration, Harris said Democrats must present voters with more than opposition to President Donald Trump.

“We’ve got to have a mindset and a purpose that is about the day after this administration leaves the White House,” Harris said. “The question is going to be, what are you going to do with the power if you get it?”

Harris closed by encouraging Americans to remain engaged in their communities and state government.

“I strongly believe nobody should be made to fight alone,” Harris said. “Especially at this moment in time.”