5th Circuit Gets New Judge, Southwick Confirmed

Senators today confirmed Mississippi Judge Leslie H. Southwick to a seat on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals despite concerns by some Democrats that his past writings were racially insensitive.

There were not enough votes for a filibuster, so Southwick won confirmation by a 59-38 vote, according to the Associated Press.

Southwick, who currently teaches at Mississippi College School of Law, previously sat on the Mississippi Court of Appeals and served as a JAG in Iraq.