Aileen Cannon | |
|---|---|
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| Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida | |
| Assumed office November 13, 2020 | |
| Appointed by | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Kenneth Marra |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Aileen Mercedes Cannon 1981 (age 42–43) Cali, Colombia |
| Political party | Republican |
| Education | |
Aileen Mercedes Cannon (born 1981) is a Colombian-born American lawyer serving since 2020 as a United States federal judge in the District Court for the Southern District of Florida. President Donald Trump nominated and appointed Cannon to the federal bench after confirmation by the US Senate in November 2020. Cannon worked for the corporate law firm Gibson Dunn from 2009 to 2012 and was a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of Florida from 2013 to 2020.
In 2022, Cannon presided over the case of Donald J. Trump v. United States of America. She ordered the US government to pause using materials seized from Trump's private club and residence in its investigation and granted Trump's request for a special master to review the material. The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reversed and rebuked Cannon after it found she had wrongly exercised jurisdiction over the case. Cannon then dismissed Trump's lawsuit per orders from the Eleventh Circuit.
Following Trump's indictment in June 2023, Cannon oversaw a federal criminal case against Trump. Many legal experts, citing her handling of the civil case against Trump, called for her recusal from the case. Under Cannon, the case was considerably delayed from getting to trial, with Cannon granting multiple requests by Trump to extend pre-trial motions. In July 2024, she dismissed the case entirely, ruling that special counsel Jack Smith's appointment was unconstitutional. The ruling is being appealed.
Cannon's rulings have received considerable media attention, with many legal experts criticizing her decisions and alleging bias over her handling Trump's legal cases.