Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Judicial Confirmation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Utah Senate Confirms Joel Ferry to Third District Court; hears remarks in Committee of the Whole
Summary
The Utah Senate consented to Gov. Spencer Cox’s nomination of Joel Ferry to the Third District Court and then resolved to a Committee of the Whole to hear Ferry, who pledged to exercise judicial power with 'restraint, fairness and humility.'
The Utah Senate voted to consent to Gov. Spencer J. Cox’s nomination of Joel Ferry to serve as a judge on the Third District Court in Salt Lake. The body then briefly resolved into a Committee of the Whole so Ferry could address the chamber.
Sen. Weiler told the Senate the Judiciary Confirmation Committee had unanimously recommended Ferry, noting his seven years as an assistant U.S. attorney in the District of Utah and his work on health-care fraud, opioid diversion and public-funds cases. The committee moved that the Senate consent to the appointment.
After the motion was placed and a roll call held, President Adams announced the Senate had consented to Ferry’s appointment. The roll-call responses are recorded in the transcript; the Senate declared the confirmation and then invited Ferry to speak.
Ferry thanked senators for the vote and described his previous work representing the United States. He invoked Justice Robert H. Jackson’s 1940 remarks on the responsible exercise of prosecutorial power and said that the same counsel applies to judges. "I commit to you ... to be guided by Justice Jackson's words and to practice restraint, fairness, and humility," Ferry told the chamber.
Ferry then introduced family members in the gallery and the Senate recognized them before dissolving the Committee of the Whole.
What happens next: The Senate’s consent completes the legislature’s role in the appointment; Ferry will assume duties in the Third District Court as the seat becomes vacant.
