Who is William Orrick, the federal judge who blocks Trump over the funding of Sanctuary City?
US district judge William H. Orrick III made headlines again this week after blocking the Donald Trump administration to cut off federal funds to sanctuary cities. The order, issued from his courtroom in San Francisco, has expanded a prior order to protect more than 30 jurisdictions, including Los Angeles, Boston, Baltimore and Chicago, Reuters reported. Orrick said the threat of administration to withdraw money from local governments refusing to cooperate with immigration housing is unconstitutional coercion. “That coercive threat (and any actions taken by agencies to realize the threat, or additional executive orders that the president present to the same purpose) is unconstitutional, so I ended its effects,” he wrote in Friday’s ruling, quoted by Reuters. The case is part of a broader collision between Trump and cities that limits local cooperation with American immigration and customs handling. But the decision also drew attention to the judge himself. Who is William Orrick? Orrick (71) serves on the US District Court for the Northern District of California. He was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2013 and handled a wide range of civil and immigration affairs from San Francisco, according to the Federal Judicial Center. Orrick was born and raised in San Francisco and obtained his undergraduate degree to Yale before being at Boston College Law School. He has been practicing the law for years, and then worked in the Justice Department during the Obama Administration and served in the Civil Division, Cand.uscourts.gov. He was confirmed by the Senate by the Senate in May 2013. His father, William Orrick Jr., was also a federal judge appointed by John F. Kennedy in the 1960s. That family legacy, plus decades in both private and public law, made Orrick a match in the legal world of California. Why his decisions are the decision of the Sanctuary Cities is only the latest flash. Orrick served several high-profile immigration and civil rights business during his tenure. In 2017, he also blocked, blocked Trump’s first attempt to deprive funding from sanctuary jurisdictions and set up the appeal fight that is now playing. According to Reuters, the White House did not comment on his most recent order. But with the administration pushing a harder line on immigration housing, legal experts expect Orrick’s court to remain an important battlefield. For cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago, its decisions meant that billions of rands in federal dollars could not be used as leverage to force policy changes. And for Orrick himself, the latest decides its role as one of the most resulting judges standing between Trump and his immigration agenda. Questions Who is William Orrick? He is an American district judge in San Francisco, who was appointed by President Obama in 2013. What is his background? Orrick studied at Yale and Boston College Law, worked in private practice and served in the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. Why is he in the news? He blocked Trump’s administration to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities. What cities are affected by its decision? More than 30 jurisdictions, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston and Baltimore. Has he previously ruled against Trump? Yes. He also blocked Trump’s 2017 order to deprive financing from sanctuary cities.