U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota
U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Eighth Circuit, which reviews its decisions on appeal. This page lists every judge to serve on the court, current and former, with who appointed them and whom they succeeded.
| Judge | Appointed by | Since |
|---|---|---|
| Lawrence L. Piersol | Clinton (D) | 1993 |
| Charles B. Kornmann | Clinton (D) | 1995 |
| Karen E. Schreier | Clinton (D) | 1999 |
| Roberto Antonio Lange | Obama (D) | 2009 |
| Eric Claude Schulte | Biden (D) | 2024 |
| Camela Catherine Theeler | Biden (D) | 2024 |
| Judge | Appointed by | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Jeffrey Lynn Viken | Obama (D) | 2009–2023 |
| Richard Howard Battey | Reagan (R) | 1985–2017 |
| John Bailey Jones | Reagan (R) | 1981–2023 |
| Donald James Porter | Carter (D) | 1979–2003 |
| Andrew Wendell Bogue | Nixon (R) | 1970–2009 |
| Fred Joseph Nichol | Johnson (D) | 1965–1996 |
| Axel John Beck | Eisenhower (R) | 1958–1981 |
| George Theodore Mickelson | Eisenhower (R) | 1954–1965 |
| Alfred Lee Wyman | Hoover (R) | 1929–1953 |
| James Douglas Elliott | Taft (R) | 1911–1933 |
| John Emmett Carland | Cleveland (D) | 1896–1911 |
| Alonzo Jay Edgerton | Harrison (R) | 1890–1896 |
How a judge gets here. Each judge is nominated by a president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, then holds a numbered seat, for life, until they take senior status, or until they leave the bench. Open any judge to see who appointed them, how the Senate voted, and whom they succeeded, a chain that runs back to 1890.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-06-28. Verify against the primary source before relying.