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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release August 25, 1994

PRESIDENT NAMES SEVEN FEDERAL JUDGES

President Clinton today nominated Fred I. Parker to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The President also nominated six individuals to serve on the U.S. District Court: Helen Gillmor for the District of Hawaii; John R. Tait for the District of Idaho; Okla Jones, II, and G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. for the Eastern District of Louisiana; James A. Beaty for the Middle District of North Carolina; and David Briones for the Western District of Texas.

"These nominees will bring legal talent and dedication to the federal bench," the President said. "I know they will serve our country with distinction."

Fred I. Parker, 56, has been Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont since 1991. He was appointed to the federal bench by President George Bush in 1990.

Prior to his judicial appointment, Judge Parker practiced law in Burlington, Vermont with the firm of Langrock Perry Parker & Wool (and its predecessor firms) from 1972 to 1990, and with Yandell & Page from 1966-1969. He served as Deputy Attorney General in the Vermont Attorney General's Office from 1969-1972. Judge Parker graduated from the University of Massachusetts and from Georgetown Law School, where he was managing editor of the Georgetown Law Journal. He served as a corporal in the United States Marine Corps Reserve from 1955 to 1962.

While in private practice, Judge Parker served on the Professional Conduct Board and the Judicial Conduct Board of the Vermont Supreme Court. From 1973 to 1979, he chaired the Vermont Law Enforcement Training Council, which provided training for state police, sheriffs, and local law enforcement agencies. Judge Parker also served as Chair of the Vermont Bar Association Special Committee on the Reform of the Judiciary from 1979 to 1980.

Judge Parker now serves on the Advisory Committee on the Civil Justice Reform Act of 1990, the Judicial Branch Committee of the National Judicial Conference, and the Second Circuit Judicial Council. He also has sat by designation on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the court to which he is now nominated. Judge Parker and his wife, Barbara, have two sons and live in Burlington, Vermont.

Upon confirmation, Judge Parker would become one of 13 judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which hears cases from Connecticut, New York and Vermont.

Helen Gillmor, 51, is a partner with the Honolulu law firm of Gillmor & Gillmor, where she has practiced since 1985. From 1977 to 1985, she sat as a per diem district court judge for the State of Hawaii. Previously, she served as a Deputy Public Defender and as a law clerk for Chief Justice William S. Richardson of the Hawaii Supreme Court. Gillmor earned a B.A. degree from Queens College and an LL.B. degree from Boston University School of Law. Gillmor and her husband, John P. Gillmor, have two children and live in Honolulu.

John R. Tait, 48, is a partner with the Lewiston, Idaho law firm of Keeton and Tait, where he has practiced since 1974. From 1968 to 1971, Tait served in the U.S. Army. He earned a B.A. degree from Columbia College and a J.D. degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law. Tait and his wife, Christina R. Bjornstand, have two children and live in Lewiston.

Okla Jones, II, 48, has served as a judge on the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans since 1990. From 1986 to 1990, he served as the City Attorney for the City of New Orleans; and from 1983 to 1986, he was Special Counsel to the New Orleans City Council. From 1976 to 1986, Jones practiced law in New Orleans. From 1973 to 1976, Jones served as the Project Director for the New Orleans Office of the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Jones earned a B.A. degree from Southern University and a J.D. degree from Boston College School of Law. Jones and his wife, Carolyn A. Carmon, have one child and live in New Orleans.

G. Thomas Porteous, 47, has served as a district judge for the 24th Judicial District Court of Louisiana since 1984. From 1982 to 1984, Porteous served as City Attorney for the City of Harahan. From 1976 to 1984, he practiced law in Louisiana. From 1973 to 1975, he served as Chief of the Felony Complaint Division of the District Attorney's Office for the Parish of Jefferson; and from 1971 to 1973, he was Special Counsel for the Louisiana Attorney General's Office. Porteous earned a B.A. degree from Louisiana State University and a J.D. degree from Louisiana State University Law School. He and his wife, Carmella Giardina Porteous, have four children and live in Metairie.

James A. Beaty, 45, has served as a Superior Court Judge in North Carolina since 1981. From 1974 to 1981, he practiced law in Winston-Salem and Lexington. Beaty earned a B.A. degree from Western Carolina University and a J.D. degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law. Beaty and his wife, Toyoko Christine Beaty, have one child and live in Winston-Salem.

David Briones, 51, has served as a judge on the El Paso County Court since 1991. From 1971 to 1991, he practiced law as a partner with the El Paso firm of Moreno and Briones. From 1964 to 1966, Briones served in the United States Army. Briones is a past-President of the Mexican-American Bar Association of El Paso and was Chairman of the Rules Committee of the El Paso Bar Association. Briones earned a B.A. degree from the University of Texas and a J.D. degree from the University of Texas School of Law. Briones and his wife, Delia Garcia Briones, have two children and live in El Paso.

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