Thomas John Whelan (born February 21, 1940) is a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of California The United States District Court for the Southern District of California (in case citations, S.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ap ...

Early life and education

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Whelan received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from the

University of San Diego The University of San Diego (USD) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in San Diego, California, United States. Chartered in 1949 as the independent San Diego College for Women and San Diego University ...

in 1961 and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

University of San Diego School of Law The University of San Diego School of Law (USD Law) is the law school of the University of San Diego, a private Roman Catholic research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1954, the law school has held ABA approval since 1961. It ...

in 1965.

Career

Whelan was a contracts administrator, planner and estimator for General Dynamics Corp. from 1961 to 1969. He was a deputy district attorney of San Diego from 1969 to 1989.

Judicial career

Whelan was a judge on the

San Diego County Superior Court The Superior Court of California, County of San Diego is the California superior court with jurisdiction over San Diego County, California. History San Diego County was one of the original counties formed when California gained statehood in 185 ...

from 1990 to 1998. As a superior court judge, Whelan presided over the infamous

Betty Broderick Elisabeth Anne Broderick (née Bisceglia; born November 7, 1947) is an American woman who murdered her ex-husband, Daniel T. Broderick III, on November 5, 1989, as well as his new wife, Linda. Betty Broderick committed the murder as an act of re ...

trials in San Diego. Whelan is a United States district judge of the

. Whelan was nominated by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

on June 4, 1998, to a seat vacated by

John Skylstead Rhoades Sr. John Skylstead Rhoades Sr. (March 18, 1925 – September 3, 2007) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. Education and career Born in Havre, Montana, Rhoades was in the U ...

He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on October 21, 1998, and received his commission on October 22, 1998. He assumed senior status on August 15, 2010. Notable cases that Whelan has presided over on the district bench include: * In 2003, Whelan was the judge assigned to a lawsuit brought by the

Imperial Irrigation District The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) is an irrigation district that serves the Imperial Valley and a large portion of the eastern and southern Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert region of Southern California. Established under the Stat ...

(representing farmers in the

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

, California), against the

U.S. Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relating t ...

, challenging the federal government's 11% cut in

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

water allocated to farmers. In 2003, Whelan ordered a reversal in the cuts pending the resolution of the suit. * In 2004, Whelan denied the Rincon Band of Luiseno Mission Indians's motion for a

temporary restraining order An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable reme ...

seeking to block California Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

's new compacts with five other Indian tribes allowing them to establish

casinos Casinos may refer to: * Casinos, Valencia, municipality in Spain * David Casinos (born 1972), Spanish Paralympian athlete * The Casinos The Casinos was a nine-member doo-wop group from Cincinnati, Ohio, led by Gene Hughes and which included ...

in exchange for the tribes contributing a share of the revenue to the State of California. Whelan held that Schwarzenegger had the power to enter into compacts with the tribes on behalf of California. * In 2020, Whelan presided over the criminal case of

Duncan D. Hunter Duncan Duane Hunter (born December 7, 1976) is an American former politician, convicted felon, and United States Marine who served as a U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2020. He is a member of the Republican Party, who was first elected to ...

, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal $150,000 in his campaign funds for personal use. Whelan sentenced Hunter to 11 months in prison.Neil Vigdor
Duncan Hunter Sentenced to 11 Months in Prison for Stealing Campaign Funds
''New York Times'' (March 17, 2020).

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Whelan, Thomas J. 1940 births Living people 20th-century California state court judges 21st-century American judges California state court judges Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California Lawyers from San Diego Superior court judges in the United States United States district court judges appointed by Bill Clinton University of San Diego alumni University of San Diego School of Law alumni