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Questions about Jed S. Rakoff

Short answers, pulled from the story.

When was Jed S. Rakoff born and where did he grow up?

Jed Saul Rakoff was born on the 1st of January 1943, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He grew up in the Germantown section of that city.

How did President Bill Clinton nominate Jed S. Rakoff to the federal bench?

President Bill Clinton nominated Jed S. Rakoff to fill a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on the 11th of October 1995. The Senate confirmed this nomination on the 29th of December 1995, and he received his judicial commission on the 4th of January 1996.

What major rulings did Jed S. Rakoff make regarding capital punishment and financial fraud?

In 2002, Jed S. Rakoff declared the federal death penalty unconstitutional in the case United States v. Quinones. In later years, he refused to approve settlements between Bank of America and the Securities and Exchange Commission over non-disclosure of bonuses at Merrill and blocked a $285 million settlement involving Citigroup due to lack of proven fraud.

Why is Jed S. Rakoff known as a feeder judge for Supreme Court clerks?

Jed S. Rakoff became known as a major feeder judge because he sent more clerks to the Supreme Court than any other district court judge from 2011 to 2015. This influence continued with numerous clerks following thereafter, establishing his impact on future legal minds.

How has Jed S. Rakoff influenced criminal justice reform through neuroscience research?

In 2021, Jed S. Rakoff granted a sentence reduction to Andrew Ramsay by exploring why youth matters in sentencing using insights from neuroscientific research about adolescent attributes like immaturity and susceptibility to peer influence. His opinion has since been cited by more than 80 federal courts to demonstrate how brain science research could inform criminal justice reform.