Cindy Chung, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, was confirmed Monday night by the U.S. Senate to a judgeship on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The court hears appeals from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the Virgin Islands.
The Senate confirmed her on a 50-44 vote.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said in a statement that Chung had “made history” as the first Asian Pacific American to sit on the 3rd Circuit “thanks in part to President Biden’s commitment to making our federal courts reflect the great diversity of our nation.”
Chung is now one of five women on the 3rd Circuit Court.
Casey said Chung has served the people of Western Pennsylvania with “integrity and a commitment to fair and equal justice.”
Chung has been the U.S. attorney in Pittsburgh since 2021 after the departure of Scott Brady following Donald Trump’s election loss to Joe Biden. She had been an assistant U.S. attorney in Pittsburgh since 2014.
Chung had previously been a trial attorney in the criminal section of the civil rights division at the Justice Department. Prior to that, she was an assistant district attorney in New York County.
Biden had nominated her for the 3rd Circuit last year.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti will become the acting U.S. attorney after she leaves.
Torsten covers the courts for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Reach him at jtorsteno@gmail.com.
