{{Short description|American judge (born 1962)}} {{pp-extended|small=yes}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2023}} {{Infobox judge | name = Tanya Chutkan | image = Tanya Chutkan, U.S. District Court Judge.jpg | office = Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia | term_start = June 5, 2014 | term_end = | appointer = Barack Obama | predecessor = ''Seat established'' | successor = | birth_name = Tanya Sue Chutkan | birth_date = 1962 | birth_place = Kingston, Jamaica | death_date = | death_place = | children = 2 | education = George Washington University (BA)<br />University of Pennsylvania (JD) }}
'''Tanya Sue Chutkan''' (born 1962) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She was appointed in 2014 by President Barack Obama.
She was the presiding judge over the criminal trial of then-former U.S. president Donald Trump over his alleged attempts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election, including the events leading up to the attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021. The case never went to trial and was dismissed without prejudice after Trump won the 2024 presidential election.
==Early life and education== Chutkan was born in 1962 in Kingston, Jamaica.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lawyercentral.com/tanya-s-chutkan-interactive-profile--20-133013.html |title=Attorney Tanya S Chutkan – Lawyer in |website=lawyercentral.com |access-date=March 28, 2016 |archive-date=April 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160408030956/http://www.lawyercentral.com/tanya-s-chutkan-interactive-profile--20-133013.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="mhd">{{cite encyclopedia|entry=Tanya S. Chutkan |title=The Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory |date=2004 |publisher=Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, Inc. |page=DG-111 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Martindale_Hubbell_Law_Directory/6Cw8AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Tanya+Chutkan+1962&dq=Tanya+Chutkan+1962&printsec=frontcover |access-date=19 February 2026}}</ref> Chutkan has a younger brother, Norman, and a younger sister, Robynne, both of whom are physicians. She is of Dougla descent. Her father Winston Chutkan is an Indo-Jamaican doctor, and her mother Noelle is an Afro-Jamaican who was one of the leading dancers at the National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica.<ref>{{cite web |title=Congressional Directory for the 115th Congress (2017-18) |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CDIR-2018-10-29/html/CDIR-2018-10-29-STATISTICALINFORMATION-18.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230805051004/https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CDIR-2018-10-29/html/CDIR-2018-10-29-STATISTICALINFORMATION-18.htm |url-status=live |archive-date=August 5, 2023 |access-date=August 4, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=NDTC returns to Toronto after 15-year Hiatus |work=Pride Magazine |date=September 18, 2014 |url=http://pridenews.ca/2014/09/18/ndtc-returns-to-toronto-after-15-year-hiatus/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230513123250/http://pridenews.ca/2014/09/18/ndtc-returns-to-toronto-after-15-year-hiatus/ |archive-date=May 13, 2023 |access-date=August 4, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Kumina turns 50 |work=Jamaica Observer |date=November 28, 2021 |url-status=live |url=https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/art-culture/kumina-turns-50/ |first1=Richard |last1=Johnson |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812051154/https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/art-culture/kumina-turns-50/ |archive-date=August 12, 2022 |access-date=August 4, 2023 }}</ref> Noelle is the daughter of Frank Hill, one of the members of the People's National Party.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} Through her mother, Chutkan is a cousin of former Liverpool and England footballer John Barnes.<ref>{{cite web |first1=Alecia |last1=Smith |title=Trump can expect a fair trial, says Judge Chutkan's aunt |work=Jamaican Observer |date=August 3, 2023 |url=https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/trump-can-expect-a-fair-trial-says-judge-chutkans-aunt/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230805051007/https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/trump-can-expect-a-fair-trial-says-judge-chutkans-aunt/ |archive-date=August 5, 2023 |access-date=August 4, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first1=Paddy |last1=Shennan |title=Former Liverpool FC star John Barnes discovers family roots on Who Do You Think You Are |work=Liverpool Echo |date=May 7, 2013 |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/former-liverpool-fc-star-john-3332429 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240117184225/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/former-liverpool-fc-star-john-3332429 |archive-date=17 January 2024 |access-date=August 4, 2023 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Chutkan received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1983 from George Washington University. She later attended the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was an associate editor of the ''University of Pennsylvania Law Review''. She graduated in 1987 with a Juris Doctor.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tanya Chutkan - Senate Judiciary Committee Questionnaire |url=https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Tanya-Chutkan-Senate-Questionnaire-Final.pdf |work=United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119060730/https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Tanya-Chutkan-Senate-Questionnaire-Final.pdf |archive-date=January 19, 2023 |access-date=August 2, 2023}}</ref>
==Early career== From 1987 to 1990, Chutkan was in private practice at the law firm Hogan & Hartson (now Hogan Lovells). From 1990 to 1991, she worked at the law firm of Donovan, Leisure, Rogovin, Huge & Schiller. From 1991 to 2002, she was a trial attorney and supervisor at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia. In 2002, Chutkan joined the law firm of Boies, Schiller & Flexner, becoming a partner in 2007. Her practice focused on complex civil litigation and specifically antitrust class action cases.<ref>{{cite press release |author=Office of the Press Secretary |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/12/19/president-obama-nominates-eight-serve-united-states-district-courts|work=whitehouse.gov|title=President Obama Nominates Eight to Serve on the United States District Courts|via=National Archives|date=December 19, 2013|access-date=March 3, 2021|archive-date=January 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170119044508/https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/12/19/president-obama-nominates-eight-serve-united-states-district-courts|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="fjc.gov">{{FJC Bio|nid=1394546|inline=yes}}</ref>
==Federal judicial service== On December 19, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Chutkan as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to a seat created pursuant to 104 Stat. 5089.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pres. Nom. 2042, 113th Cong. (2013) |url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/113th-congress/1042|access-date=June 18, 2018|archive-date=June 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618075417/https://www.congress.gov/nomination/113th-congress/1042|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/12/19/presidential-nominations-sent-senate |work=whitehouse.gov |title=Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate |via=National Archives |date=December 19, 2013 |access-date=March 3, 2021 |archive-date=November 10, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110024240/https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/12/19/presidential-nominations-sent-senate|url-status=live}}</ref> She received a hearing before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee on February 25, 2014.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nominations|url=http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/nominations-2014-02-25|work=United States Senate|date=February 25, 2014 |publisher=Committee on the Judiciary|access-date=February 25, 2014|archive-date=April 7, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407073322/http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/nominations-2014-02-25|url-status=live}}</ref> On March 27, 2014, her nomination was reported out of committee by a voice vote.<ref>{{cite web|title=Executive Business Meeting|url=http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Results%20of%20Executive%20Business%20Meeting%20-%2003-27-14.pdf|work=United States Senate|publisher=Committee on the Judiciary|access-date=March 27, 2014|archive-date=March 30, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330213912/http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Results%20of%20Executive%20Business%20Meeting%20-%2003-27-14.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> On June 3, 2014, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 54–40 vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1132/vote_113_2_00170.htm|title=On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Nomination of Tanya S. Chutkan, of the District of Columbia, to be U.S. District Judge)|publisher=United States Senate|access-date=November 19, 2022|archive-date=December 12, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212041751/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1132/vote_113_2_00170.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> On June 4, 2014, her nomination was confirmed by a 95–0 vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=113&session=2&vote=00173|title=On the Nomination (Confirmation Tanya S. Chutkan to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia)|publisher=United States Senate|access-date=June 4, 2014|archive-date=June 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606220826/http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=113&session=2&vote=00173|url-status=live}}</ref> She received her judicial commission on June 5, 2014.<ref name="fjc.gov"/>
===Notable cases=== In February 2017, Public.Resource.Org was sued by the American Society for Testing and Materials, the National Fire Protection Association, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, and other entities for scanning and making available building codes and fire codes which these organizations consider their copyrighted property.<ref>{{cite press release |work=Electronic Frontier Foundation |url=https://www.eff.org/press/releases/publicresourceorg-fights-back-against-copyright-lawsuit |title=Public.Resource.Org Fights Back Against Copyright Lawsuit |date=August 20, 2013 |access-date=July 2, 2014 |archive-date=July 3, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703075406/https://www.eff.org/press/releases/publicresourceorg-fights-back-against-copyright-lawsuit |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://dockets.justia.com/docket/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410 |title=Docket |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204170543/https://dockets.justia.com/docket/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410 |archive-date=February 4, 2017 |work=United States District Court for the District of Columbia |access-date=17 January 2024 |via=Justia |url-status=live }}</ref> Chutkan ruled against Public.Resource.Org, ordering all of the standards to be deleted from the Internet.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20170203/00341736620/federal-court-basically-says-okay-to-copyright-parts-our-laws.shtml |title=Federal Court Basically Says It's Okay To Copyright Parts Of Our Laws |last1=Masnick |first1=Mike |date=February 3, 2017 |work=Techdirt |access-date=February 3, 2017 |archive-date=February 3, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203194859/https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20170203/00341736620/federal-court-basically-says-okay-to-copyright-parts-our-laws.shtml |url-status=live}}</ref> Public.Resource.Org appealed her ruling to the D.C. Circuit, which reversed and remanded her decision in 2018, holding that the fair use doctrines had been improperly applied.<ref>{{cite web |title=American Society for Testing v. Public.Resource.Org, Inc. |url=https://fairuse.stanford.edu/case/american-society-for-testing-v-public-resource-org-inc/ |publisher=Stanford University |access-date=September 23, 2019 |date=July 17, 2018 |archive-date=March 26, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326142721/https://fairuse.stanford.edu/case/american-society-for-testing-v-public-resource-org-inc/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In March 2022, Chutkan issued a new ruling that would allow Public.Resource.Org to reproduce 184 standards under fair use, partially reproduce 1 standard, and deny reproduction of 32 standards that were found to differ in substantive ways from those incorporated by law;<ref>{{cite web |title=American Society for Testing and Materials Et Al V. Public.resource.org, Inc., No. 1:2013cv01215 - Document 239 (D.D.C. 2022) |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410/239/ |website=Justia Law |language=en |page=36 |access-date=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=January 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131145205/https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410/239/ |url-status=live }}</ref> ASTM et al. has since appealed again to the D.C. Circuit.<ref>{{cite web |title=Notice of Appeal to DC Circuit Court |url=https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410/242 |website=Justia Dockets & Filings |access-date=August 19, 2022 |language=en |date=April 28, 2022 |archive-date=January 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131145204/https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2013cv01215/161410/242 |url-status=live }}</ref>
In summer 2017, Chutkan presided over the Imran Awan and Hina Alvi fraud case.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/fl-reg-imran-awan-sentencing-20180821-story.html |title=Former Wasserman Schultz aide Imran Awan sentenced to time served |last1=Hsu |first1=Spencer S. |date=2018-08-21 |website=Sun-Sentinel |language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-02|archive-date=January 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131001353/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/fl-reg-imran-awan-sentencing-20180821-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Hsu |first1=Spencer S. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/ex-congressional-it-staffer-set-to-be-sentenced-after-prosecutors-debunk-conspiracy-theories/2018/08/21/0b1006ee-a4b1-11e8-8fac-12e98c13528d_story.html |title=Ex-congressional IT staffer given time served in loan case after prosecutors debunk conspiracy theories |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 21, 2018 |access-date=August 21, 2018 |archive-date=August 21, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821154356/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/ex-congressional-it-staffer-set-to-be-sentenced-after-prosecutors-debunk-conspiracy-theories/2018/08/21/0b1006ee-a4b1-11e8-8fac-12e98c13528d_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
In ''Garza v. Hargan'' (2017), Chutkan ordered the Office of Refugee Resettlement to allow a girl in its care to have an abortion.<ref>{{Bluebook journal |first= |last=Note |title=Recent Case: En Banc D.C. Circuit Upholds Order Requiring HHS to Allow an Undocumented Minor to Have an Abortion |volume=131 |journal=Harv. L. Rev. |page=1812 |url=https://harvardlawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/1812-1819_Online.pdf |year=2018}}</ref> That ruling was vacated by a panel of the D.C. Circuit, reinstated by the full ''en banc'' D.C. Circuit, and ultimately mooted by the U.S. Supreme Court.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Liptak |first1=Adam |authorlink=Adam Liptak |title=Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Discipline A.C.L.U. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/04/us/politics/supreme-court-rejects-bid-to-discipline-aclu.html |access-date=June 18, 2018 |work=The New York Times |date=June 4, 2018 |page=A14 |archive-date=June 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618053133/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/04/us/politics/supreme-court-rejects-bid-to-discipline-aclu.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In December 2017, Chutkan granted relief to two additional pregnant minors who sued seeking access to abortion services while in ORR custody.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Astor |first1=Maggie |title=2 Undocumented Teenagers Must Be Allowed Abortions, Judge Rules |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/18/us/abortion-immigrant-ruling.html/ |access-date=November 10, 2021 |work=The New York Times |date=December 18, 2017 |page=A14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618052610/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/18/us/abortion-immigrant-ruling.html/ |archive-date=June 18, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> In March 2018, Chutkan certified a class action and ordered ORR to provide access to abortions to all minors in their custody.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Stevens |first1=Matt |title=Judge Temporarily Stops U.S. From Blocking Undocumented Teenagers' Abortions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/31/us/abortion-immigrant-teens.html |access-date=June 18, 2018 |work=The New York Times |date=March 31, 2018 |archive-date=June 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618053140/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/31/us/abortion-immigrant-teens.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
On June 8, 2018, Chutkan blocked until June 20 the release in Syrian Democratic Forces-controlled territory of a dual-nationality Saudi-American citizen alleged to have joined ISIL. The man, who is now held for nine months in Iraq, was planned to be released by the U.S. military{{snd}}with a new cell phone, some food and water and $4,210 in cash, and his Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) identification card, as soon as the next day.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2018/Jun-08/452600-judge-questions-plan-to-release-us-detainee-into-syrian-war-zone.ashx |title=Judge questions plan to release US detainee into Syrian war zone |date=June 8, 2018 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 8, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180608215955/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2018/Jun-08/452600-judge-questions-plan-to-release-us-detainee-into-syrian-war-zone.ashx |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.wlns.com/ap-top-news/government-will-hold-off-releasing-american-back-to-syria/1226479284 |title=Government will hold off releasing American back to Syria |last1=Gresko |first1=Jessica |date=June 8, 2018 |work=WLNS |access-date=June 8, 2018 |language=en-US |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612145641/http://www.wlns.com/ap-top-news/government-will-hold-off-releasing-american-back-to-syria/1226479284 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
On March 7, 2019, Chutkan ruled that U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos illegally delayed the implementation of the "Equity in IDEA" regulations. These regulations updated how states calculate racial disparities in the identification of children as being eligible for special education, the placement of children in restrictive classroom settings, and the use exclusionary discipline. Chutkan also ruled that the U.S. Department of Education violated the law concerning the spread of regulations by neglecting to provide a "reasoned explanation" for the delay, and failing to account for the costs that child, parents, and society would bear.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Green |first1=Erica L. |title=Judge Rules DeVos Held Up Obama-era Rule on Special Education |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/08/us/politics/betsy-devos-special-education.html |access-date=March 11, 2019 |work=The New York Times|date=March 8, 2019 |page=A15 |archive-date=March 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190310121605/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/08/us/politics/betsy-devos-special-education.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
On April 26, 2019, Chutkan sentenced Maria Butina to 18 months in prison for conspiring to be an unregistered agent of the Russian government in the United States.<ref>{{Cite news |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48070413 |title=Russian agent jailed for targeting NRA |date=April 26, 2019 |access-date=April 26, 2019 |language=en-GB |archive-date=April 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190426182927/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48070413 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |first1=Ryan |last1=Lucas |date=April 26, 2019 |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/04/26/716799929/russian-agent-maria-butina-to-be-sentenced-in-federal-court-on-friday |title=Russian Agent Maria Butina Sentenced To 18 Months Following Guilty Plea |website=NPR |language=en |access-date=April 26, 2019 |quote=U.S. District Court Judge Tanya S. Chutkan ordered the 18-month sentence and said Butina would receive credit for the roughly nine months she has already served. |archive-date=April 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190426100847/https://www.npr.org/2019/04/26/716799929/russian-agent-maria-butina-to-be-sentenced-in-federal-court-on-friday |url-status=live}}</ref>
On November 20, 2019, Chutkan issued a preliminary injunction against the U.S. Department of Justice, finding that federal inmates sentenced to death were likely to succeed in arguing that the federal government's new lethal injection procedure{{snd}}which uses a single drug, pentobarbital, rather than the three-drug combination previously in place{{snd}}"exceeds statutory authority" under the Federal Death Penalty Act.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Berman |first1=Mark |date=November 21, 2019 |title=Federal judge blocks Trump administration's plans to resume executions |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/11/21/william-barr-death-penalty-halted-federal-judge/ |access-date=June 16, 2020 |archive-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617182743/https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/11/21/william-barr-death-penalty-halted-federal-judge/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Chutkan's order was later reversed by a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit,<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Swanson |first1=Ian |date=May 20, 2020 |title=Death row inmates ask for stay while they appeal to Supreme Court |url=https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/498798-death-row-inmates-ask-for-stay-while-they-appeal-to-supreme-court |access-date=June 16, 2020 |website=The Hill |language=en |archive-date=June 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616141528/https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/498798-death-row-inmates-ask-for-stay-while-they-appeal-to-supreme-court |url-status=live}}</ref> and the case went to the U.S. Supreme Court.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Trump Federal Execution Revival Back at Supreme Court (1) |first1=Jordan S. |last1=Rubin |url=https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/trump-federal-execution-revival-back-at-supreme-court |date=June 9, 2020 |access-date=June 16, 2020 |website=news.bloomberglaw.com |language=en |archive-date=June 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616152401/https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/trump-federal-execution-revival-back-at-supreme-court |url-status=live}}</ref> The reversal of the injunction was upheld and thirteen federal inmates were executed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 20, 2020 |title=Justices clear the way for eighth federal execution this year |first1=Katie |last1=Bart |url=https://www.scotusblog.com/2020/11/justices-clear-the-way-for-eighth-federal-execution-this-year/ |access-date=February 10, 2022 |website=SCOTUSblog |language=en-US |archive-date=February 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210172106/https://www.scotusblog.com/2020/11/justices-clear-the-way-for-eighth-federal-execution-this-year/ |url-status=live}}</ref>
On November 9, 2021, Chutkan denied former President Donald Trump's motion to keep records from being released to the House Select Committee investigating the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/trump-records-jan-6-committee-judge-ruling/2021/11/09/4d256cec-3e44-11ec-bfad-8283439871ec_story.html |title=Trump White House records can be turned over to House Jan. 6 investigative committee, judge rules |last1=Hsu |first1=Spencer |date=November 9, 2021 |access-date=November 10, 2021 |newspaper=The Washington Post |archive-date=November 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211110023426/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/trump-records-jan-6-committee-judge-ruling/2021/11/09/4d256cec-3e44-11ec-bfad-8283439871ec_story.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |agency=The Canadian Press |title=Judge refuses Trump request to block Jan. 6 records |date=November 9, 2021 |url=https://lethbridgenewsnow.com/2021/11/09/judge-refuses-trump-request-to-block-jan-6-records/ |access-date=November 10, 2021 |website=Lethbridge News Now |language=en |archive-date=May 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501044841/https://lethbridgenewsnow.com/2021/11/09/judge-refuses-trump-request-to-block-jan-6-records/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The D.C. Circuit affirmed that decision, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined review.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Liptak |first1=Adam |date=January 19, 2022 |title=In Rebuke to Trump, Supreme Court Allows Release of Jan. 6 Files |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/19/us/politics/trump-supreme-court-jan-6.html |access-date=January 22, 2022 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122032444/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/19/us/politics/trump-supreme-court-jan-6.html |url-status=live}}</ref>
Chutkan has overseen the trials of more than 30 defendants in cases related to the January 6 Capitol attack. According to ''The Washington Post'', she has been the toughest sentencing judge in those cases, ordering at least some jail or prison time in all cases, and sometimes exceeding the sentence recommended by prosecutors.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/08/01/judge-chutkan-trump-jan-6-special-counsel/|title=Judge Tanya Chutkan is the toughest Jan. 6 sentencer. Next on her docket: Trump.|last1=Hsu|first1=Spencer S.|last2=Jackman|first2=Tom|date=August 1, 2023|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=August 3, 2023|archive-date=August 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230803130546/https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/08/01/judge-chutkan-trump-jan-6-special-counsel/|url-status=live}}</ref>
As of August 1, 2023, Chutkan was the judge overseeing Trump's criminal trial over his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, culminating in the events leading up to the January 6 Capitol attack.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Feuer |first1=Alan |date=August 1, 2023 |title=Trump Indictment: Jan. 6 Riot Was 'Fueled by Lies' From Trump, Special Counsel Says |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/08/01/us/trump-indictment-jan-6 |access-date=August 1, 2023 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=August 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230801213542/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/08/01/us/trump-indictment-jan-6 |url-status=live }}</ref>
===2025 DOGE ruling=== In a ruling on February 18, 2025, Chutkan declined to issue a temporary restraining order that would have blocked the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE), led by Elon Musk under President Donald Trump’s administration, from accessing federal employee data or making personnel changes. This decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by fourteen Democratic-led states seeking to limit DOGE’s authority.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Federal judge won't immediately block Elon Musk or DOGE from federal data or worker layoffs {{!}} AP News | url=https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-doge-layoffs-government-data-13653c59c1f6fa0c5ae551f821faafb7 | access-date=2026-05-13 | website=apnews.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sneed |first=Devan Cole, Tierney |date=2025-02-18 |title=Judge Chutkan rejects call from Democratic AGs for temporary restraining order blocking DOGE's access to federal data {{!}} CNN Politics |url=https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/18/politics/doge-temporary-restraining-order-chutkan/index.html |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> Chutkan determined that the states failed to prove "imminent, irreparable harm," a necessary legal threshold for such an emergency injunction, though she acknowledged their broader concerns about Musk’s unchecked power and the constitutionality of his role as legitimate questions for future litigation.<ref>{{Cite news |agency=Associated Press |date=2025-02-19 |title=Federal judge refuses to block Musk team's access to US government data |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/19/musk-doge-access-data-judge-ruling |access-date=2025-02-21 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
==Personal life== Her ex-husband,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Draper |first1=Robert |date=October 15, 2023 |title=Tanya Chutkan, an Unflinching Judge in the Trump Jan. 6 Trial |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016103314/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/15/us/politics/tanya-chutkan-judge-trump-jan-6-trial.html |archive-date=16 October 2023 |url-status=live |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/15/us/politics/tanya-chutkan-judge-trump-jan-6-trial.html |access-date=October 16, 2023}}</ref> Peter A. Krauthamer, served as a judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia from 2012 to 2023. They have two sons.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/imo/media/doc/PreparedStatementKrauthamer20111108.pdf |title=Opening Statement of Peter A. Krauthamer |date=November 8, 2011 |website=United States Senate |language=en |access-date=December 9, 2019 |archive-date=October 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009090435/https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/PreparedStatementKrauthamer20111108.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>
Chutkan donated $1,500 to Barack Obama's campaign between 2008 and 2009.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.newsweek.com/tanya-chutkan-donated-1500-barack-obama-campaign-records-1816863 |title=Tanya Chutkan Donated $1,500 to Barack Obama's Campaign, Records Reveal |access-date=August 4, 2023 |archive-date=August 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230805051003/https://www.newsweek.com/tanya-chutkan-donated-1500-barack-obama-campaign-records-1816863 |work=Newsweek |first1=Giulia |last1=Carbonaro |date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live }}</ref>
On January 7, 2024, Chutkan was doxxed and swatted.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |first1=Jack |last1=Date |first2=Luke |last2=Barr |first3=Beatrice |last3=Peterson |title=Federal judge overseeing Trump case has DC home swatted |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/federal-judge-overseeing-trump-case-dc-home-swatted/story?id=106207251 |date=9 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-09 |website=ABC News |language=en}}</ref>
== See also == * List of African-American federal judges * List of African-American jurists * List of Jamaican Americans
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Wikiquote|Tanya Chutkan}} *{{FJC Bio|nid=1394546}} *{{Ballotpedia|Tanya_S._Chutkan}}
{{s-start}} {{s-legal}} {{s-new|seat}} {{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia}}|years=2014–present}} {{s-inc}} {{s-end}}
{{United States DC Circuit district judges}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chutkan, Tanya Sue}} Category:1962 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century American lawyers Category:20th-century American women lawyers Category:20th-century African-American lawyers Category:21st-century American lawyers Category:21st-century American women judges Category:21st-century African-American lawyers Category:African-American judges Category:African-American women lawyers Category:American jurists of Asian descent Category:American people of Jamaican descent Category:Boies Schiller Flexner people Category:George Washington University alumni Category:Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia Category:Lawyers from Washington, D.C. Category:People associated with Hogan Lovells Category:People associated with the January 6 United States Capitol attack Category:People from Kingston, Jamaica Category:Public defenders Category:United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama Category:University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni