Booker, Menendez Applaud Nomination of Karen M. Williams to U.S. District Court of NJ

Judge Williams would be the first African-American Senate-confirmed federal judge to sit in the Camden, New Jersey, courthouse
Williams’ nomination is President Biden’s fourth in just over a month for New Jersey’s district court

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) applauded President Biden’s nomination of Karen M. Williams to the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Her nomination was announced this morning by the White House as part of a new group of judicial nominees.

“Judge Williams is an highly qualified jurist who would not only bring fairness and impartiality to the federal bench, but also reflects New Jersey’s rich diversity,” said Sen. Booker. “Judge Williams has had a long and distinguished legal career defending the rights of workers and has a deep understanding of the issues facing the people of South Jersey. I look forward to her hearing before the Judiciary Committee and her confirmation by the full Senate.”

“Judge Karen M. Williams’ unique experience as a human resources professional, trial attorney, and magistrate judge make her eminently qualified to serve on the U.S. District Court of New Jersey,” said Sen. Menendez.  “Once again, President Biden has selected a stellar nominee who reflects the values and diversity of New Jersey.  Judge Williams is a thoughtful and intelligent legal mind and, if appointed, would become the first Senate-confirmed African American and person of color to sit in the U.S. District courthouse in Camden, N.J.  I am confident that she will not only administer equal justice under the law, but serve the people of New Jersey with distinction.”

 Karen M. Williams has served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court in the District of New Jersey since 2009. Judge Williams also currently serves as an adjunct professor at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey.  Prior to her appointment, Judge Williams spent 17 years in private practice at Jasinski & Williams, P.C. in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Judge Williams’s work focused on employment law, including litigation in state and federal courts and before administrative bodies.  Judge Williams received her J.D. from the Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law in 1992 and her B.S. from the Pennsylvania State University in 1985. If her nomination succeeds, Judge Williams would be the first Senate-confirmed African American federal judge to sit in the Camden, New Jersey, courthouse.

Williams’ nomination is President Biden’s fourth in just over a month for New Jersey’s district court. On March 30, President Biden nominated Bergen County Counsel and former Newark Municipal Court Judge Julien X. Neals and Magistrate Judge Zahid N. Quraishi. If confirmed, Quraishi would become the country’s first Muslim American federal judge. In May, President Biden nominated President Biden nominated Christine P. O’Hearn to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Senator Booker has served on the Senate Judiciary Committee since 2018. He has been a leader in the Senate on criminal justice and policing reform since he was first elected in 2013. Booker has introduced numerous criminal justice reform proposals, including: the Marijuana Justice Act, the Fair Chance Act, the CARERS Act, the MERCY Act, the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act, the Second Look Act, and the Justice in Policing Act. He was also a key architect of the most sweeping overhaul of the criminal justice system in decades, the First Step Act, which was signed into law in 2018.