Catherine Curtis Blake (born July 27, 1950) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.

Catherine C. Blake
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
Assumed office
April 2, 2021
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
In office
October 3, 2014 – October 6, 2017
Preceded byDeborah K. Chasanow
Succeeded byJames K. Bredar
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
In office
August 14, 1995 – April 2, 2021
Appointed byBill Clinton
Preceded byJohn R. Hargrove Sr.
Succeeded byLydia Griggsby
Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
In office
1987 – August 14, 1995
Personal details
Born
Catherine Curtis Blake[1]

(1950-07-27) July 27, 1950 (age 74)
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
EducationRadcliffe College (AB)
Harvard Law School (JD)

Early life and education

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Blake was born in Boston, Massachusetts. After receiving an Artium Baccalaureus degree from Radcliffe College in 1972, she enrolled in Harvard Law School, where she received a Juris Doctor in 1975.

Career

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Blake was in private practice in Boston, from 1975 to 1977. She was with the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland from 1977 to 1987. During that period, she was an Assistant United States Attorney from 1977 to 1983, then became a first assistant from 1983 to 1985, when she was appointed by the court to serve as the United States Attorney, a position she held until 1987, when she again became the first assistant.

Federal judicial service

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In 1987 Blake became a United States magistrate judge of the District of Maryland. In 1995, Blake became a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. She was nominated by President Bill Clinton on May 4, 1995, to a seat vacated by John R. Hargrove Sr. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on August 11, 1995, and received her commission on August 14, 1995. She served as Chief Judge of the District of Maryland from October 3, 2014 to October 6, 2017. She assumed senior status on April 2, 2021.[2]

Judge Blake presided over the infamous Baltimore Gun Trace Task Force case.[3] She is portrayed in the final episode of the HBO miniseries "We Own This City" which depicts the events surrounding the case.[4]

In October 2020, Judge Blake struck down a constitutional challenge to Governor Hogan's executive order that mandated state contractors were not allowed to engage in a political or economic boycott of Israel in their business or personal life.[5] The case was one of several constitutional challenges to anti-BDS laws since 2017.

References

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  1. ^ Confirmation hearings on federal appointments: hearings before the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, One Hundred Fourth Congress, first session, on confirmation of appointees to the federal judiciary.
  2. ^ Catherine C. Blake at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  3. ^ "Ex-leader of rogue police unit gets 25 years in prison". Associated Press. 7 June 2018.
  4. ^ "We Own This City (TV Mini Series 2022) - IMDb". IMDb.
  5. ^ "Maryland's anti-BDS law 'chills' free speech". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
1995–2021
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
2014–2017
Succeeded by