SEATTLE (AP) — U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell are considering who might serve as new judges on the badly understaffed federal bench in the Western District of Washington state, after receiving recommendations from a selection panel charged with finding professionally and ethnically diverse candidates. The Democrats are expected to forward names to President Joe Biden, who will nominate judges who must be confirmed by the Senate. Five of the seven full-time, active district judge positions at the federal courthouses in Seattle and Tacoma are vacant — the highest ratio in the country — and the district’s semi-retired senior judges have been picking up much of the slack.
Diverse panel recommends US judge candidates in Washington
