Denise J. Casper facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Denise J. Casper
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| Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts | |
| Assumed office July 1, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | F. Dennis Saylor IV |
| Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts | |
| Assumed office December 20, 2010 |
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| Appointed by | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Reginald C. Lindsay |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Denise Jefferson
January 9, 1968 East Patchogue, New York, U.S. |
| Education | Wesleyan University (BA) Harvard University (JD) |
Denise Jefferson Casper (born January 9, 1968) is an American judge. She is the Chief Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. This is a very important federal court in the state of Massachusetts.
Before becoming a judge, she worked as a top lawyer called the Deputy District Attorney for Middlesex County. Judge Casper made history as the first Black woman to become a federal judge in Massachusetts. She is also known for being the judge in the trial of the famous Boston crime figure, Whitey Bulger.
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Early Life and Schooling
Denise Casper was born in East Patchogue, New York. She went to Wesleyan University and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1990. After college, she studied at the famous Harvard University and received her JD degree in 1994. A JD is a special degree needed to become a lawyer.
Career Path
After law school, Casper began her career as a law clerk. A law clerk helps judges with research and writing. She worked for two judges at the Massachusetts Appeals Court.
From 1995 to 1998, she was a lawyer at the law firm Bingham McCutchen. There, she handled civil cases, which are legal disagreements between people or companies.
In 1999, Casper became an Assistant United States Attorney in Boston. These lawyers represent the U.S. government in court. Starting in 2004, she became a deputy chief in a special group that fights organized crime. She also taught legal writing at Boston University School of Law from 2005 to 2007.
From 2007 until she became a federal judge, Casper was the Deputy District Attorney for Middlesex County in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Becoming a Federal Judge
In 2010, President Barack Obama chose Casper to become a judge for the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The United States Senate approved her, and she officially became a judge on December 20, 2010.
When she was appointed, she was the first African-American woman to be a federal judge in Massachusetts. She was also one of the youngest federal judges in the country at the time.
Important Cases
As a judge, Casper has overseen some very important cases.
In 2013, she was the judge for the trial of Whitey Bulger, a well-known crime boss from Boston. She managed the court proceedings that led to his conviction.
In 2020, she handled a case about the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The lawsuit asked the U.S. government to officially add the ERA to the U.S. Constitution. Judge Casper ruled that the group who brought the lawsuit did not have the legal right to sue. Because of this, she could not make a decision on whether the ERA should be added.
Personal Life
Judge Casper is engaged to David Ewing Duncan, who is an author.
See also
- List of African-American federal judges
- List of African-American jurists
- List of first women lawyers and judges in Massachusetts
