U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Seventh 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 |
|---|---|---|
| John Phil Gilbert | Bush (R) | 1992 |
| Nancy Jo Rosenstengel | Obama (D) | 2014 |
| Staci Michelle Yandle | Obama (D) | 2014 |
| David Wayne Dugan | Trump (R) | 2020 |
| Stephen Patrick McGlynn | Trump (R) | 2020 |
| Judge | Appointed by | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Joseph Reagan | Clinton (D) | 2000–2019 |
| David R. Herndon | Clinton (D) | 1998–2019 |
| G. Patrick Murphy | Clinton (D) | 1998–2013 |
| Paul E. Riley | Clinton (D) | 1994–2001 |
| William Donald Stiehl | Reagan (R) | 1986–2016 |
| William Louis Beatty | Carter (D) | 1979–2001 |
| James L. Foreman | (reassignment) (N) | 1979–2012 |
| William George Juergens | (reassignment) (N) | 1979–1988 |
| James Waldo Ackerman | Ford (R) | 1976–1979 |
| Harlington Wood Jr. | Nixon (R) | 1973–1976 |
| Robert Dale Morgan | Johnson (D) | 1967–1979 |
| Omer Poos | Eisenhower (R) | 1958–1976 |
| Frederick Olen Mercer | Eisenhower (R) | 1956–1966 |
| J[ackson] Leroy Adair | Roosevelt (D) | 1937–1956 |
| James Earl Major | Roosevelt (D) | 1934–1937 |
| Charles Guy Briggle | Hoover (R) | 1932–1972 |
| Louis FitzHenry | Wilson (D) | 1918–1933 |
| J. Otis Humphrey | McKinley (R) | 1901–1918 |
| William Joshua Allen | Cleveland (D) | 1888–1901 |
| Samuel Hubbel Treat Jr. | Pierce (D) | 1855–1887 |
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 1855.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-06-28. Verify against the primary source before relying.