Judge Dabney Friedrich
District of Columbia U.S. District Court
Patricia Dabney Langhorne was born in June 1967 in Pensacola, Florida. She earned an undergraduate degree from Trinity University and a graduate diploma from University College, Oxford. She received her Juris Doctor from Yale Law School. Friedrich clerked for a judge on the District of Columbia U.S. District Court.
Friedrich served as associate counsel to President George W. Bush and as chief crime counsel to a U.S. senator. She became a Justice Department trial attorney, then served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the District of Southern California.
Friedrich was nominated by President Bush to serve on the U.S. Sentencing Commission. She was confirmed by the Senate in 2007. She was nominated by President Donald Trump to the District of Columbia U.S. District Court in June 2017. The Senate confirmed her in November and she received her commission in December 2017.
Friedrich is married to Matthew.
In the News…
Federal Judge Dabney Friedrich of the D.C. District Court dismissed the lawsuit brought by a former member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The former member had claimed that his removal was illegal and based on racial discrimination.
Citing the Supreme Court’s ruling that upheld the president’s removal of a member of the Federal Trade Commission, Judge Friedrich wrote that, while the plaintiff was correct that his removal was not for cause under federal code, “a statute that violates the Constitution is a nullity, and the protection from removal… is incompatible with the separation of powers.”
The judge highlighted the wide range of NTSB executive powers, writing, “Because the executive power belongs to the President, an officer may exercise it only with the President’s consent. … Congress, then, may not bar the President from removing an officer who holds ‘part of the executive power.'”
Judge Friedrich also found that “firing people because of their policy views is not tantamount to firing them because of their race. Even considered alongside the alleged disparities in removals and appointments, administration officials’ DEI-related statements do not plausibly suggest that race motivated [the plaintiff’s] removal.”
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Friedrich today? You can let her know at:
The Honorable Dabney L. Friedrich
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse
333 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20001
