Judge Ronald Gould
Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
Ronald Murray Gould was born in October 1946 in St. Louis, Missouri. He earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan School of Law. He clerked at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and later for Associate Justice Potter Stewart of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Gould spent 24 years in private practice in Seattle, Washington, and also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Washington Law School.
He was nominated by President Bill Clinton to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In a voice vote, he was confirmed by the Senate and received his commission in November 1999.
In the News…
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that a federal law against encouraging illegal immigration violates the First Amendment.
The case involves a statute that makes it a crime for “any person… who encourages or induces an alien to come to, enter, or reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming ton, entry, or residence, is or will be in violation of the law.”
The court acknowledged that Congress could prohibit encouraging illegal immigration, but held that a statute prohibiting such encouragement was overbroad because it would criminalize a substantial amount of otherwise legal speech.
The judge offered some examples that are considered to be “a substantial amount of protected speech.” He included, “Encouraging an undocumented immigrant to take shelter during a natural disaster, advising an undocumented immigrant about available social services, telling a tourist that she is unlikely to face serious consequences if she overstays her tourist visa, or providing certain legal advice to undocumented immigrants…”
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Gould today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable Ronald M. Gould
Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
700 Stewart Street
Seattle, WA 98101
