Judge Daniel Traynor
North Dakota U.S. District Court
Daniel Mack Traynor was born in 1970 in Devils Lake, North Dakota. He earned an undergraduate degree from the University of North Dakota and received a Juris Doctor from the University of North Dakota School of Law. He served as a law clerk at the North Dakota Supreme Court, before entering the private practice of law.
He was nominated by President Donald Trump to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota. On a cloture vote, his nomination was approved by the Senate 51-41. He received his judicial commission in January 2020.
In the News…
U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Traynor ruled in favor of law enforcement officials in a lawsuit brought by protesters who demonstrated against the Dakota Access pipeline and alleged excessive use of force by police in 2016.
The lawsuit, filed in 2017, claimed police fired water cannons, rubber bullets, tear gas, and exploding munitions “indiscriminately” into the crowd. At the time, there was conflict between demonstrators and police at the border of Stand Rock Sioux Reservation in freezing temperatures. Attorneys for the defendants argued that officers were outnumbered and that they feared for their lives.
Judge Traynor said police conduct was reasonable in the face of an “unprecedented” protest.
“The most telling of the entire situation is the fact that officers issued two code red requests and a Signal 100, requesting the assistance of every available officer in the state,” Judge Traynor wrote in his decision. “This has never been done in North Dakota history.”
The Dakota Access pipeline runs from North Dakota to Illinois for 1,172 miles. It began operating in 2017.
As of August 2021, oil continues to be shipped through the Dakota Access pipeline to the dismay of opponents who say the line should not have gone into service at all.
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Traynor today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable Daniel M. Traynor
North Dakota U.S. District Court
220 East Rosser Ave, Suite 411
Bismarck, ND 58502
