Sen. Murray hails Peterson’s pick as E. Washington federal judge

SPOKANE — The nomination of Rosanna Peterson to be a federal judge in Eastern Washington is a triumph for the bipartisan approach to selecting candidates, said U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

Peterson, a Gonzaga University law professor, was nominated by President Barack Obama on Tuesday to become the first woman federal judge to serve Eastern Washington.

Her nomination must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

“I’m proud to support her and I’m proud that our bipartisan Washington State Selection Committee process continues to produce exceptional candidates,” Murray said in a statement.

Selection processes similar to Washington’s are becoming more common, replacing a system in which the senators would select the nominees to send to the president, said University of Richmond Professor Carl Tobias, a judicial selection expert.

“I’m very honored and extremely appreciative of the vote of confidence from President Obama,” Peterson said.

She has served as president of the Federal Bar Association for Eastern Washington and the Woman Lawyers State Bar Association. She was among more than two dozen applicants for the lifetime position last November, and the only woman among the three finalists.

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., called the nomination of a woman to the court “historic.”

The American Bar Association, which rates judicial appointment candidates, unanimously found Peterson “qualified.”

There is a backlog of judicial nominees waiting on Senate confirmation, with 20 ahead of Peterson, so Tobias said he doubted her confirmation vote will come this year.

Peterson graduated from the University of North Dakota Law School in 1991. She was in private practice in Spokane before joining the Gonzaga faculty in 1999.

Earl Martin, GU’s acting academic vice president, said the university has been anticipating losing her to the federal bench.

“You hate to lose her, but at the same time this is wonderful for her and frankly wonderful for the institution,” he said. “It’s a great honor for the place.”