In 1954, Wardlaw was born as Kim Anita McLane in San Francisco, California. Wardlaw's father was a salesman of Scotch Irish lineage. Wardlaw's mother was Soledad Jiménez McLane, an American accountant of Mexican descent.[1][4][5]
President Clinton nominated Wardlaw to the United States District Court for the Central District of California on August 10, 1995. The Judiciary Committee unanimously approved her nomination, and the Senate confirmed Wardlaw on December 22, 1995, by unanimous consent. She received her judicial commission on December 26, 1995. She served on the district court until August 3, 1998 when she was elevated to the court of appeals.[7]
Clinton nominated Wardlaw to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on January 27, 1998. The Judiciary Committee approved her nomination by a 17–1 vote, and the Senate again confirmed her nomination by unanimous consent on July 31, 1998. She received her judicial commission on August 3, 1998.[7]
In 2006, Judge Wardlaw held that homeless plaintiffs could challenge an ordinance banning sleeping on the street, over the dissent of Judge Pamela Ann Rymer.[8]
Redding v. Safford Unified School District
On July 11, 2008, Wardlaw ruled in favor of Savannah Redding, a 13-year-old girl who was strip searched because she was wrongly suspected of having drugs on her. Wardlaw, joined by Judges Pregerson, Fisher, Paez, M. Smith, and N.R. Smith, ruled that the strip search of Redding violated the 4th amendment and denied individuals conducting the strip search qualified immunity.[9] In Safford Unified School District v. Redding, the Supreme Court affirmed the 9th circuit on the strip search violating the 4th amendment, but granted qualified immunity to the individuals conducting the strip search. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg & John Paul Stevens dissented from the qualified immunity ruling and voted to affirm Wardlaw's ruling in full.
Bryan v. McPherson
Wardlaw wrote the majority opinion in Bryan v. MacPherson, a case where police officers tasered a man at a traffic spot because he was not wearing a seatbelt. Wardlaw concluded that the police violated the man's 4th amendment rights, and that use of a taser can be considered excessive force. Wardlaw also wrote a concurrence in denying en banc, joined by judges Pregerson, Reinhardt, and W. Fletcher, defending her initial decision to rule against the officers.[10][11]
Bringas-Rodriguez v. Sessions
On March 8, 2017, Wardlaw ruled that Carlos Bringas-Rodriguez, a gay Mexican, must be given protection from persecution, overruling Castro-Martinez v. Holder. She ruled that Bringas-Rodriguez had suffered past prosecution, as he was abused as a child based on his sexual orientation, and that the Mexican police would not investigate the abuse because of Bringas-Rodriguez's sexual orientation. Wardlaw was joined by Chief Judge Sidney Runyan Thomas, Judge William A. Fletcher, Milan Smith, Morgan Christen, John B. Owens, Michelle T. Friedland, and Senior Judge Barry G. Silverman, over the dissent of Carlos Bea who was joined by Diarmuid O'Scannlain. Richard R. Clifton concurred in the judgement but would not overrule Castro-Martinez v. Holder.
On July 12, 2019, in City of Los Angeles V. Barr, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overturned a nationwide injunction issued in 2018, thus upholding preferential treatment in awarding community policing grants to cities that cooperate with immigration authorities. In the opinion, Judge Sandra Ikuta wrote, "Cooperation relating to enforcement of federal immigration law is in pursuit of the general welfare, and meets the low bar of being germane to the federal interest in providing the funding to "address crime and disorder problems, and otherwise... enhance public safety... one of the main purposes for which” the grant is intended. In her dissent, Judge Wardlaw wrote, "[The Department of Justice's] decision to implement both the illegal immigration focus area and the Cooperation Certification is foreclosed by the text, structure, and purpose of the Community Policing Act."[12]
In July 2019, Wardlaw dissented when the 9th circuit en banc upheld Trump's gag rule which defunded abortion providers from Title X funds.
Tresóna v. Burbank High School
In March 2020, Wardlaw authored the opinion of the court on Tresóna Multimedia v. Burbank High School Vocal Music Ass'n,[13] which held the school choir's usage of the song Magic was fair use, and that the school should be awarded attorney's fees due to Tresóna's "overreaching claims of copyright infringement".[14]
Wardlaw wrote that
Tresóna did more than simply pursue an aggressive litigation strategy. It sued a public school teacher, a not-for-profit Boosters Club, and parent volunteers. [...] None of these actions furthers the purposes of the Copyright Act. Courts have a legitimate interest in deterring the type of litigation conduct in which Tresóna engaged, and in compensating those who have been harmed by such conduct. [...] Awarding Defendants their attorneys' fees insures that they are properly compensated for defending against overreaching claims of copyright infringement and pressing a defense that benefits those educating our youth. An award of attorneys' fees here assures that "an overzealous monopolist [cannot] use his copyright to stamp out the very creativity that the [Copyright] Act seeks to ignite," allowing for greater breathing room for classroom educators and those involved in similar educational extracurricular activities.
On September 23, 2021, Wardlaw, joined by Milan Smith, ordered the DOJ to publicize records regarding the number of weapons that were formerly owned by law enforcement. The basis for this decision was the Freedom of Information Act.[15]
Personal life
Wardlaw's husband is William Wardlaw. They have two children, William, Jr. and Katherine Ann. Since 2009, Wardlaw and her family have resided in Pasadena, California.[16][17]
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1 2 Tresóna Multimedia, LLC v. Burbank High School Vocal Music Ass'n,17-56006(9th Cir.2020).
↑ Pam Chestek (2020-03-30). "Don't Sue a High School Choir for Copyright Infringement in the Ninth Circuit". Retrieved 2020-03-30. The panel affirmed the district court's summary judgment in favor of the vocal music director at Burbank High School and other defendants in a copyright suit and reversed the district court's denial of attorneys' fees to defendants.
↑ "CIR v. DOJ"(PDF). ca9.uscourts.gov. September 23, 2021. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
↑ Roderick, Kevin (January 2005). "Reign Maker". kevinroderick.com. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
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