Terry A. Doughty
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana
Assumed office
December 5, 2022
Preceded byS. Maurice Hicks Jr.
Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana
Assumed office
March 7, 2018
Appointed byDonald Trump
Preceded byRobert G. James
Chief Judge of the Louisiana District Court for the 5th District
In office
2013–2014
Judge of the Louisiana District Court for the 5th District
In office
January 1, 2009 – March 8, 2018
Preceded byGlenn W. Strong
Succeeded byJohn C. Hamilton
Personal details
Born
Terry Alvin Doughty

(1959-01-16) January 16, 1959
Rayville, Louisiana, U.S.
EducationLouisiana Tech University (BS)
Louisiana State University (JD)

Terry Alvin Doughty (born January 16, 1959) is the Chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. Nominated by President Donald Trump, Doughty served as a judge on the Fifth Judicial District Court in Louisiana from 2009 to 2018.

Biography

Doughty was born on January 16, 1959, in Rayville in Richland Parish in northeastern Louisiana.[1] He received his Bachelor of Science in finance from Louisiana Tech University and his Juris Doctor from the Louisiana State University Law School.[2]

Career

From 1985 through 2008, Doughty served as an assistant district attorney for the Fifth Judicial District. During that period, he prosecuted misdemeanor and felony cases, and litigated post-conviction proceedings and juvenile cases. Before joining the district attorney's office, he practiced at the Rayville law firm of Cotton, Bolton, Hoychick & Doughty.[2]

Judicial career

State judicial career

As a judge, Doughty presided over criminal, civil, and juvenile cases arising in the parishes of Franklin, Richland, and West Carroll. Elected in 2008 to serve as a judge of the Fifth Judicial District in Louisiana, he replaced retiring Judge Glenn W. Strong. He assumed that office on January 1, 2009.[3]

In 2015, Doughty was reelected to the court and received the Citizen Lawyer Award from the Louisiana State Bar Association. Doughty retired from the state bench on March 8, 2018.[4]

Federal judicial service

On August 3, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Doughty to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, to the seat vacated by Judge Robert G. James, who assumed senior status on May 31, 2016.[5] His nomination was endorsed by U.S. Representative Ralph Abraham of Louisiana's 5th congressional district, who like Doughty resides in Richland Parish, and U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy and John Neely Kennedy.[6] Doughty was rated "well qualified" by the American Bar Association.[7] On November 1, 2017, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[8] On December 7, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by a voice vote.[9] On March 1, 2018, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 94–2 vote.[10] Doughty's nomination was confirmed on March 6, 2018, by a 98–0 vote.[11] He received his commission on March 7, 2018. He became chief judge on December 5, 2022.[12]

Notable rulings

On July 4, 2023, Doughty issued an injunction against the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, among others, prohibiting them from asking social media companies to remove alleged misinformation, as part of a lawsuit brought by Missouri and Louisiana against the Biden administration for what the plaintiffs describe as violations of the First Amendment and federal law.[13] On July 14, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit halted the order for the time being.[14][15]

Limitations on Biden administration contact with social media firms

On July 4, 2023, in connection with a lawsuit filed by the Republican attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana,[16] Doughty ruled that the Biden administration likely violated the First Amendment in censoring negative views regarding aspects of the coronavirus pandemic on social media, placing limits on the Administration's contact with social media firms.[17] Politico reported:

Doughty also issued a sweeping preliminary injunction barring numerous federal officials and agencies—including Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and all employees of the Justice Department and FBI—from having any contact with social media firms for the purpose of discouraging or removing First Amendment-protected speech.

The next day, the Department of Justice (DOJ) requested that Doughty stay his order pending appeal, which he denied; within hours, the DOJ filed a notice to appeal.[18][19] Ten days later, a three-judge panel for the New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request for a temporary hold on the "far-reaching preliminary injunction", while it is referred to an appeals panel that will rule on a longer-term stay of Doughty's order.[16][20]

Block on COVID-19 vaccine mandate

In 2021, Doughty issued a nationwide injunction against a federal mandate that healthcare workers be vaccinated against COVID-19.[21] His opinion repeated debunked claims made by Dr. Peter McCollough, including that vaccines are not useful because booster shots are recommended after six months, that vaccines "do not prevent transmission of the disease", and that "the virus has achieved an immune escape from COVID-19 vaccines". A cardiologist, McCollough was fired from his position as vice chief of internal medicine at Baylor University Medical Center for spreading misinformation about COVID-19.[22][23][24]

On January 1, 2022, Doughty issued an injunction on a federal mandate that would require workers at Head Start, a pre-K program, to be vaccinated against COVID-19. His ruling applied to the 24 states whose attorneys general signed on to the lawsuit.[25]

On September 21, 2022, Doughty entered a permanent injunction against a federal vaccine and mask mandate for the Head Start program in 24 states that would have required its teachers, contractors, and volunteers to be fully vaccinated. Doughty ruled that President Joe Biden did not have constitutional authority to issue such a mandate.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "Attorney Terry A Doughty - Lawyer in Rayville LA". www.lawyercentral.com.
  2. 1 2 "President Donald J. Trump Announces Sixth Wave of Judicial Candidates and Fifth Wave of U.S. Attorney Candidates". whitehouse.gov – via National Archives.
  3. ↑ "Fifth Judicial District Court – The Judges". www.5jdc.us/. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Judge Carl Sharp to retire from bench in July, special election called".
  5. ↑ "Eighteen Nominations Sent to the Senate Today". whitehouse.gov – via National Archives.
  6. ↑ Barbara Leader and Greg Hilburn (August 4, 2017). "Trump taps Rayville judge for federal bench". The Monroe News-Star. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  7. ↑ Macagnone, Michael (November 1, 2017). "GOP Sens. Deride 'Not Qualified' Rating For 8th Circ. Pick". Law360. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Nominations - United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary". www.judiciary.senate.gov. November 2017.
  9. ↑ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – December 7, 2017" (PDF). Senate Judiciary Committee.
  10. ↑ "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Terry A. Doughty to be U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Louisiana)". United States Senate. March 1, 2018.
  11. ↑ "On the Nomination (Confirmation Terry A. Doughty, of Louisiana, to be U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Louisiana)". United States Senate. March 6, 2018. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
  12. ↑ Terry A. Doughty at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  13. ↑ Myers, Steven Lee; McCabe, David (July 4, 2023). "Federal Judge Limits Biden Officials' Contacts With Social Media Sites". The New York Times. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Appeals court pauses order limiting Biden administration contact with social media companies". NBC News. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  15. ↑ Pierson, Brendan. "Court blocks curbs on US government contact with social media companies for now". Reuters. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  16. 1 2 JOSH GERSTEIN and Kyle Cheney, "Appeals court temporarily blocks order that restricted feds’ contact with social media firms" Politico, July 14, 2023. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Judge limits Biden administration contact with social media firms" MATT BERG and JOSH GERSTEIN, Politico, July 4, 2023. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  18. ↑ "Justice Dept. asks 5th Circuit to delay judge’s social media order" Cat Zakrzewski and Tim Starks, July 10, 2023, The Washington Post. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  19. ↑ "U.S. is barred from combating disinformation on social media. Here's what it means" Laurel Wamsley and Shannon Bond, NPR, July 5, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Appeals court pauses order blocking Biden administration from communicating with social media companies" Dan Berman, CNN, July 14, 2023. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  21. ↑ Hilburn, Greg. "Louisiana federal judge blocks nationwide COVID vaccine mandate for health care workers". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  22. ↑ Times, Camryn Sanchez Arizona Capitol (May 26, 2023). "Panelists make outrageous claims in conservative Covid committee | Arizona Capitol Times". Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  23. ↑ Tierney Sneed (December 10, 2021). "Trump-appointed judges question role of vaccines in fight against Covid as they block mandates". CNN. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  24. ↑ "State of Louisiana et al. versus Xavier Becerra et al." (PDF). Western District of Louisiana. November 30, 2021.
  25. ↑ "Federal judge blocks Biden vaccine mandate for Head Start workers in 24 states". Iowa Capital Dispatch. January 3, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  26. ↑ "Louisiana federal judge blocks Biden COVID vaccine mandate for Head Start program". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
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