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Richard G. Kopf

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American judge (1946–2025)
Richard G. Kopf
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
In office
December 1, 2011 – January 17, 2025
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
In office
1999–2004
Preceded byWilliam G. Cambridge
Succeeded byJoseph Bataillon
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
In office
May 26, 1992 – December 1, 2011
Appointed byGeorge H. W. Bush
Preceded byWarren Keith Urbom
Succeeded byJohn M. Gerrard
Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
In office
1987–1992
Personal details
BornRichard George Kopf
(1946-12-01)December 1, 1946
Toledo, Ohio, U.S.
DiedJanuary 17, 2025(2025-01-17) (aged 78)
EducationKearney State College (BA)
University of Nebraska–Lincoln (JD)

Richard George Kopf (December 1, 1946 – January 17, 2025) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska.

Background

Kopf received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Kearney State College (now the University of Nebraska at Kearney) in 1969, where he was a member of Phi Kappa Tau fraternity. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln College of Law in 1972. He was a law clerk for Judge Donald Roe Ross of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit for two years following law school and then entered private practice in Lexington, Nebraska. In 1984, he served as counsel for the State of Nebraska in the impeachment of the Nebraska Attorney General.

Kopf died on January 17, 2025, at the age of 78.

Federal judicial service

Kopf served as a United States magistrate judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska from 1987 to 1992.

Kopf was nominated by President George H. W. Bush on April 7, 1992, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska vacated by Judge Warren Keith Urbom. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 21, 1992, and received commission on May 26, 1992. He served as chief judge from 1999 to 2004. He assumed senior status on December 1, 2011.

Controversial opinions

Kopf received considerable press coverage for abortion-related decisions, particularly for his 474-page opinion striking down a ban on late-term abortions in Carhart, et al., v. Ashcroft. His decision included the apology "I apologize for the length of this opinion. I am well aware that appellate judges have plenty to do and that long-winded opinions from district judges are seldom helpful.... Nonetheless, I pity the poor appellate judge who has to slog through this thing. I am truly sorry."

In 2007 Kopf dismissed without prejudice a case over the use of the words "rape" and "sexual assault" in a rape trial in Lancaster County, Nebraska. Tory Bowen had filed a lawsuit against Judge Jeffre Cheuvront for violating her right to free speech in a rape trial; Kopf dismissed the suit because Bowen had not shown enough evidence to demonstrate her lawsuit was not frivolous. Cheuvront had barred the words "rape" and "sexual assault" from the trial, but allowed words such as "sexual intercourse" and "intercourse" to be used instead.

Awards and honors

Kopf served as president and board chair of the historical society for the Eighth Circuit. He served as administrator of the Robert Van Pelt Inn of Court, a legal professional organization, until 2008; the organization gave Kopf its Warren Keith Urbom Mentor Award the same year.

Personal blog

From 2013 to 2015, Kopf maintained a personal blog entitled Hercules and the Umpire: The Role of the Federal Trial Judge.

On August 8, 2013, Kopf published a blog, "Shon Hopwood and Kopf’s terrible sentencing instincts" relaying that he had given Hopwood a 12-year prison term for bank robbery, having then misjudged him as a "punk". Hopwood subsequently became a successful criminal attorney and a Georgetown University Law Center professor.

Kopf ended the blog after members of his courthouse staff indicated that it was an embarrassment to the court.

References

  1. ^ Richard G. Kopf at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  2. "Phi Kappa Tau Hall of Fame". Phi Kappa Tau. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  3. Pilger, Lori (January 18, 2025). "Retired Nebraska federal judge Richard Kopf dies at 78". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
  4. "Resolution: Senior Status of the Honorable Richard G. Kopf, United States District Judge, District of Nebraska" (PDF). U.S. District Court, District of Nebraska. Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  5. "Nebraska judge finds partial-birth abortion ban unconstitutional". Elizabethton Star. September 9, 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2011.
  6. Carhart v. Ashcroft, 331 F. Supp. 2d 805, 809-810 (D. Neb. 2004)
  7. ^ "Judge tosses lawsuit over word 'rape'". USA Today. September 26, 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2011.
  8. Bowen v. Cheuvront, 516 F. Supp. 2d 1021 (D. Neb. 2007)
  9. "The Historical Society of the United States Courts in the Eighth Circuit". U.S. Courts Library: Eighth Circuit. Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  10. Kopf, Richard. "Financial Disclosure Report for Calendar Year 2009" (PDF). Judicial Watch. p. 5. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  11. "Warren K. Urbom Mentor Award". The Robert Van Pelt American Inn of Court. American Inns of Court. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  12. Kopft, Richard. "Hercules and the Umpire". Hercules and the Umpire. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  13. "'My sentencing instincts suck,' blogging judge admits, wishing ex-con-turned-law-student well" by Sarah Mui, American Bar Association, August 9, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  14. "Meet a convicted felon who became a Georgetown law professor" by Steve Kroft, CBS News, July 21, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  15. "Nebraska federal judge ends controversial blog; Will remain on bench - netnebraska.org". netnebraska.org.

External links

Legal offices
Preceded byWarren Keith Urbom Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
1992–2011 		Succeeded byJohn M. Gerrard
Preceded byWilliam G. Cambridge Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
1999–2004 		Succeeded byJoseph Bataillon
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