Sylvia Rambo
Sylvia H. Rambo was a federal judge on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. She joined the court in 1979 after being nominated by President Jimmy Carter (D). She assumed senior status on April 18, 2001, and retired from the court on August 30, 2024.[1]
Rambo passed away on December 23, 2024.[1]
Early life and education
A native of Royersford, Pennsylvania, Rambo graduated from Dickinson College with her bachelor's degree in 1958 and from the Dickinson School of Law with her J.D. in 1962.[1]
Professional career
- 2001 - 2024: Senior judge
- 1992-1999: Chief judge
- 1979-2001: Judge
- 1978-1979: Private practice, Pennsylvania
- 1976-1978: Judge, Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas
- 1975-1977: Adjunct faculty, Dickinson School of Law
- 1973-1976: Public defender, Cumberland County, Pa.
- 1976: Chief public defender
- 1963-1976: Private practice, Pennsylvania
- 1962-1963: Attorney, Trust Department, Bank of Delaware[1]
Judicial career
Middle District of Pennsylvania
Rambo was nominated by President Jimmy Carter on May 29, 1979, to a new seat created by 92 Stat. 1629. Rambo was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 23, 1979, and she received her commission on July 24, 1979. Rambo served as the chief judge of the court from 1992 to 1999. She elected to take senior status beginning on April 18, 2001.[1] Rambo was succeeded in this position by Christopher Conner.
Noteworthy cases
Man sentenced in illegal gun case (2014)
On April 22, 2014, Judge Rambo sentenced Carlos C. Hill, a convicted felon, to almost 20 years in prison for his possession of a stolen firearm. In September 2012, Hill was arrested and indicted after brandishing a stolen gun at a woman in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. A jury found Hill guilty of the charges in March 2013. Rambo ordered that Hill serve a 235-month prison term, as well as a five-year term of supervised probation after his release.[2][3]
Homeless student must be allowed to re-enroll (2010)
A federal judge ordered a thirteen-year-old student originally enrolled in the Steelton-Highspire School District the right to re-enroll back in the district after being displaced by a fire.
Judge Rambo sided with attorneys representing the student when ruling that a 1987 state law prohibited students from being forced out of a school district due to circumstances beyond their own control. The law only granted a school district to right to force a student out after the parents willfully moved to another residence.[4]
PA kennel law (2009)
On September 11, 2009, Judge Rambo upheld the constitutionality of Pennsylvania's law on commercial dog kennels which was passed by the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2008. A coalition of trade associations and dog breeders sued the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on constitutional grounds, suggesting that provisions allowing random searches of kennels violated the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Rambo found that the Commonwealth had legal standing to perform random searches.[5]
See also
- United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
- United States Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Federal Judicial Center, "Biography of Judge Sylvia H. Rambo," accessed August 30, 2024
- ↑ PennLive.com, "Harrisburg man sentenced to 19 1/2 years in federal prison in gun case," April 22, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Pennsylvania, "Press Release: Harrisburg Man Sentenced To Prison On Firearms Charges As Part Of On-Going Partnership To Prosecute Violent Crime," April 22, 2014
- ↑ Patriot-News, "Federal judge orders Steelton-Highspire to re-enroll homeless student," April 7, 2010
- ↑ The Philadelphia Inquirer, "Federal judge upholds tougher Pa. kennel law," September 12, 2009
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania 2001-2024 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania 1979-2001 |
Succeeded by Christopher Conner |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 |
Ballantine • Bownes • Boyle • Bua • Carr • Clark • Cowan • Daly • Filippine • Higginbotham • Hoeveler • Hug • Johnstone • Kane • Keith • Leval • Logan • MacLaughlin • McKay • Melton • Merritt • Murphy • Nickerson • Oberdorfer • Roszkowski • Roy • Rubin • Sifton • Tang • Vance • Veron | ||
| 1978 |
Arnold • Baker • Boyle • Burns • Campos • Claiborne • Collins • Cook • Devine • Diamond • Duplantier • Edenfield • Friedman • Gonzalez • Greene • Jenkins • Lowe • Mazzone • McMillian • O'Brien • Pfaelzer • Phillips • Pollak • Sand • Shapiro • Simmons • Smith • Sweet • Tanner • Wiseman • Ziegler | ||
| 1979 |
Ackerman • Alarcon • Anderson • Arceneaux • Arnold • Aspen • Beatty • Beer • Belew • Bertelsman • Bilby • N. Black • S. Black • Bloch • Bowen • Brett • Brooks • Brown • Buchmeyer • Bunton • Burciaga • Cabranes • Carr • Carrigan • Castagna • Cire • Clark • Cohn • Conaboy • Cordova • Crabb • Cudahy • Davis • DeAnda • Debevoise • Edwards • Eginton • Ellison • Enslen • O. Evans • T. Evans • Farris • Ferguson • Fletcher • Frye • Garcia • Garza • B. Gibson • H. Gibson • Gierbolini-Ortiz • Giles • Gilliam • Green • Hall • Hastings • Hatchett • Hatfield • Hatter • Hawkins • Henderson • Higby • Hillman • Houck • Howard • Hudspeth • Hungate • F. Johnson • S. Johnson • N. Jones • S. Jones • Karlton • Kazen • Kearse • Keeton • Kehoe • Kennedy • Kidd • King • Kravitch • Loughlin • Martin • McCurn • McDonald • McNaught • McNichols • Mikva • Mitchell • Moran • Murnaghan • Murphy • D. Nelson • D.W. Nelson • Newblatt • Newman • Overton • Paine • Panner • J. Parker • R. Parker • Penn • Perez-Gimenez • Perry • Politz • Poole • Porter • Pregerson • Price • Rambo • Ramirez • Reavley • Redden • E. Reed • S. Reed • Reinhardt • Renner • Robinson • Rothstein • Sachs • Saffels • Sanders • Sarokin • Schroeder • Schwartz • Seay • Senter • Seymour • Shannon • Shaw • Shoob • Skopil • Sloviter • Sofaer • Spellman • Sprouse • Staker • Tate • Taylor • Thompson • Tidwell • Unthank • Vietor • Vining • Wald • Ward • Weinshienk • West • Wicker • Williams • Winder • Woods • Wright • Zobel | ||
| 1980 |
Aguilar • Aldrich • Anderson • Boochever • Breyer • Britt • Cahill • Canby • Carroll • Cerezo • Clemon • S. Ervin • R. Erwin • Getzendanner • Gilmore • Ginsburg • Haltom • Hardy • Henderson • Hobbs • Holschuh • Horton • Howard • Johnson • Keep • Kelly • Kenyon • Kocoras • Marquez • Marshall • Michael • Nixon • Norris • Patel • Polozola • Propst • Quackenbush • Ramsey • Rice • Shadur • Spiegel • Tashima • Thompson • Vela • White • Williams | ||
| 1981 | |||
Federal courts:
Third Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania
State courts:
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania • Pennsylvania Superior Court • Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court • Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas • Pennsylvania Magisterial Districts
State resources:
Courts in Pennsylvania • Pennsylvania judicial elections • Judicial selection in Pennsylvania