[Senate Hearing 106-136] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] S. Hrg. 106-136 NOMINATIONS OF ERIC WASHINGTON, STEPHEN GLICKMAN, AND HIRAM PUIG-LUGO ======================================================================= HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON THE NOMINATIONS OF ERIC WASHINGTON AND STEPHEN GLICKMAN, TO BE ASSOCIATE JUDGES OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURT OF APPEALS, AND HIRAM PUIG- LUGO, TO BE ASSOCIATE JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SUPERIOR COURT __________ APRIL 20, 1999 __________ Printed for the use of the Committee on Governmental AffairsU.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 57-781 cc WASHINGTON : 1999 _______________________________________________________________________ For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402 COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS FRED THOMPSON, Tennessee, Chairman WILLIAM V. ROTH, Jr., Delaware JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut TED STEVENS, Alaska CARL LEVIN, Michigan SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico ROBERT G. TORRICELLI, New Jersey THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi MAX CLELAND, Georgia ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania JOHN EDWARDS, North Carolina JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire Hannah S. Sistare, Staff Director and Counsel Johanna L. Hardy, Counsel Joyce A. Rechtschaffen, Minority Staff Director and Counsel Peter A. Ludgin, Minority Professional Staff Member Darla D. Cassell, Administrative Clerk C O N T E N T S ------ Opening statements: Page Senator Voinovich............................................ 1 WITNESSES Tuesday, April 20, 1999 Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton, from the District of Columbia....................................................... 2 Eric Washington, to be Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals...................................... 3 Stephen Glickman, to be Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals...................................... 3 Hiram Puig-Lugo, to be Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Superior Court........................................ 4 Alphabetical List of Witnesses Glickman, Stephen: Testimony.................................................... 3 Biographical and professional information.................... 28 Holmes, Rep. Eleanor Holmes: Testimony.................................................... 2 Puig-Lugo, Hiram: Testimony.................................................... 4 Biographical and professional information.................... 60 Washington, Eric: Testimony.................................................... 3 Biographical and professional information.................... 7 APPENDIX Senator Paul Strauss, Shadow U.S. Senator Elected by the Voters of the District of Columbia, prepared statement................ 5 NOMINATIONS OF ERIC WASHINGTON, STEPHEN GLICKMAN, AND HIRAM PUIG-LUGO ---------- TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 1999 U.S. Senate, Committee on Governmental Affairs, Washington, DC. The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:30 a.m., in room SD-342, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. George V. Voinovich, Chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, Restructuring and the District of Columbia, presiding. Present: Senators Voinovich and Durbin. OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR VOINOVICH Senator Voinovich. The hearing will come to order. I would like to welcome everyone here this morning, especially our nominees, D.C. Superior Court Judge Eric Washington, Mr. Stephen Glickman, who have been nominated to serve as Associate Judges for the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, and Mr. Hiram Puig-Lugo--do I have that correct? Mr. Puig-Lugo. Yes, sir, you do. Senator Voinovich. That is like Voinovich. In fact, my granddaughter just turned two and I was finding out whether or not she can pronounce her last name. She still cannot. [Laughter.] Mr. Puig-Lugo has been nominated to serve as an Associate Judge for the District of Columbia Superior Court. Let me state for the record that all of our nominees have been subjected to a very thorough screening process. They were all recommended by the District's Judicial Nomination Committee, subjected to FBI background investigations, and subsequently nominated by the President of the United States. Since the nominations were received, the Committee staff has also conducted separate background checks and interviews with each of the nominees. I thought maybe one other member of the Committee would be here, but maybe they will come in a little later. We are pleased to have with us today District of Columbia Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton. Eleanor and I have known each other a long time. We still cannot figure out when we first met, Eleanor, but it was a good occasion. She has done an outstanding job of representing the District and I am pleased that I am going to have an opportunity to work with you as part of my responsibilities as Subcommittee Chairman here. Eleanor has been gracious to come and introduce the candidates, and Eleanor, we are pleased to have you here. TESTIMONY OF ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Ms. Norton. Thank you, Senator. If I may say so, Mr. Chairman, we are very pleased to see that this Committee is chaired by a very distinguished former mayor of the City of Cleveland. I am particularly pleased this morning to introduce three Washingtonians who have had outstanding careers and who have rendered distinguished service to the law and to their community, two for the city's Court of Appeals and one for the D.C. Superior Court. Judge Eric Washington is now an Associate Judge on the D.C. Superior Court. Before becoming Judge, Judge Washington served as the principal Deputy D.C. Corporation Counsel, which is the position just below the Corporation Counsel for the District of Columbia, the city's chief legal officer. He came there from Hogan and Hartson, where he was a partner. He was earlier associated with Fulbright and Jaworski. Judge Washington was educated at Tufts and Columbia Law School. His community activities have included work with the Boys and Girls Club. He and his wife have three children. Stephen Glickman is the managing partner in the law firm here of Zuckerman, Spaeder, Goldstein, Taylor and Kolker. His career includes 4 years of service on the staff of the D.C. Public Defenders Service. He was also before that a staff attorney with the Federal Trade Commission. Mr. Glickman is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University and a 1973 graduate of Yale Law School. After graduating from law school, he clerked on the Connecticut Supreme Court. His service to the community has included board of directors of the Neighborhood Legal Services Corporation. He and his wife have two children. He is being nominated to the Court of Appeals, as well. Nominated for the D.C. Superior Court is Hiram E. Puig- Lugo. He is a trial attorney now with the Civil Rights Division, Criminal Section, of the Justice Department. Mr. Puig-Lugo has been before that Deputy Chief of the Trial Division of the Public Defenders Service of this city, working himself to that position from a trial attorney. Mr. Puig-Lugo is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and in 1988 of its law school. He has served as an instructor for judicial reform in a project in El Salvador. He is co-editor of a D.C. practice manual. His community activities have included the board of directors of the Hispanic Bar Association. He has one son. It is my very distinct pleasure to recommend these three nominees to you, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Thank you very much. If the nominees could please stand and if you will raise your right hand, I would like to swear you in. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you will give to the Committee today will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God? Mr. Glickman. I do. Judge Washington. I do. Mr. Puig-Lugo. I do. Senator Voinovich. Please be seated. Welcome, Judge Washington. We are pleased to have you here today. I understand that you are accompanied by members of your family. Would you like to introduce them? TESTIMONY OF HON. ERIC WASHINGTON,\1\ TO BE ASSOCIATE JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURT OF APPEALS Judge Washington. I would. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. With me today is my wife, Sheryl, and my daughter, Erica, who is representing the children in my family. Out of deference to this Committee and my fellow nominees, I thought my 2-year-old son probably should best not come today and my older daughter had obligations in school. But Erica is here and I am very pleased to have her here with my wife. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\ The biographical information and questionnaire of Judge Washington appears in the Appendix on page 7. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Senator Voinovich. We are very happy to have you here today. If you would like to make a statement, we would appreciate it. Judge Washington. With respect to the Committee, I wanted to thank you, Mr. Chairman, for expeditiously scheduling these hearings. I hear quite often from the judges on the Court of Appeals how anxious they are to have new persons up there to help them. They have been shorthanded. I want to thank your staff especially. They have been very gracious and very professional and have moved this process along and have been very forthcoming and helpful in every respect. So I want to thank the Committee and the Committee staff for this opportunity. I do want to say that I am humbled by the opportunity to serve as an Associate Judge of the D.C. Court of Appeals. It is a position that comes with enormous responsibilities and I am looking forward to having an opportunity to work with my fellow judges on that court and to hopefully make a difference in the city. Thank you. Senator Voinovich. Thank you. I appreciate the nice words about the staff. I am learning as a new Senator that you are only as good as the staff and they have been very, very conscientious about moving us to this hearing today. Mr. Glickman, we are glad to have you here today with us. If you would like to introduce anyone from your family, we would appreciate it. TESTIMONY OF STEPHEN GLICKMAN,\2\ TO BE ASSOCIATE JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURT OF APPEALS Mr. Glickman. Thank you. I would like to introduce my wife, Ann Glickman, who has come here as a representative of our family. I guess my kids are still in school. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \2\ The biographical information and questionnaire of Judge Glickman appears in the Appendix on page 28. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for the courtesies that you and the staff have shown me. I would like to second, if I may, my colleague's remarks. The staff and yourself, Senator, have just been very helpful to us in every regard and we are very appreciative. Like Judge Washington, I, too, am thrilled and honored and humbled by the opportunity that awaits me and I am looking forward to it. Senator Voinovich. Thank you. Mr. Puig-Lugo, we are glad to have you here. If you would like to make an opening statement or introduce anyone, we would welcome it. TESTIMONY OF HIRAM PUIG-LUGO,\1\ TO BE ASSOCIATE JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SUPERIOR COURT Mr. Puig-Lugo. Thank you. Yes, sir. Good morning. It is an honor for me to appear before you as a nominee to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. It was through the cases that I handled in her courtrooms that I came to know, appreciate, and value our community. I am excited and humbled by the opportunity to join Superior Court in her mission of serving the District of Columbia and her residents. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\ The biographical information and questionnaire of Judge Puig- Lugo appears in the Appendix on page 60. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are several people whom I would like to acknowledge in the hearing room today who have been friends, supporters, and mentors over the past few years. One of them is the Hon. Ricardo Urbina of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the Hon. Richard Roberts from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Chief Judge Eugene Hamilton from the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, and Mari Carmen Aponte, formerly of the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission. I would like to echo the comments of Judge Washington and Mr. Glickman thanking you, Senator, and the Committee staff for your assistance over the last few months. Senator Voinovich. Thank you very much. One of the things we have all learned in life is that, so often, our success in life depends on people who have taken an interest in this and have encouraged us and it is nice that you have your mentors with you today. Mr. Puig-Lugo. Thank you. Senator Voinovich. As I mentioned to you, there are three questions that I would like to ask of each of you. They are required under the statute. Judge Washington, I will start with you. First of all, is there anything which you are aware of in your background which might present a conflict of interest with the duties of the office to which you have been nominated? Judge Washington. No, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from fully and honorably discharging the responsibilities of the office to which you have been nominated? Judge Washington. No, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from serving the full term for the office to which you have been nominated? Judge Washington. None that I am aware of, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Mr. Glickman, is there anything of which you are aware of in your background which might present a conflict of interest with the duties of the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Glickman. No, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from fully and honorably discharging the responsibilities of the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Glickman. No, I do not, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from serving the full term for the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Glickman. No, I do not, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Mr. Puig-Lugo, is there anything which you are aware of in your background which might present a conflict of interest with the duties of the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Puig-Lugo. No, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from fully and honorably discharging the responsibilities of the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Puig-Lugo. No, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. Do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from serving the full term for the office to which you have been nominated? Mr. Puig-Lugo. No, sir, I do not. Senator Voinovich. I would like to bring to your attention that the Committee has received letters of support of the nominees, and without objection, they will be placed in the record. [The prepared statement of Mr. Strauss follows:] PREPARED STATEMENT OF SENATOR PAUL STRAUSS, SHADOW U.S. SENATOR ELECTED BY THE VOTERS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Chairman Voinovich, and Members of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, I am Paul Strauss, the U.S. Senator elected by the voters of the District of Columbia, a position sometimes referred to as the Shadow Senator. I am also an attorney who practices in our local courts. In each of those capacities, I appreciate the opportunity to provide this statement on behalf of my constituents in the District of Columbia. I am present here today to wholeheartedly express my support of Judge Erik T. Washington, nominated for Associate Judge of the District of Columbia. I have known Judge Washington since before he was a judge, when we both actively worked together with a community organization in the District of Columbia. I have had the privilege to appear before Judge Washington as an attorney and have come to know him on the bench, as well as being a personal friend.Despite that friendship, he never showed me any bias or favor and has always demonstrated the highest levels of integrity, both on and off the bench. He even chastised me once, when I properly deserved it. He has been a lawyer with the District's Corporation Counsel, and has also worked in private practice with much success. He is respected by his colleagues, the members of the bar and the Washington legal community in general. As this Committee should know from my involvement with past nominations, I am not hesitant to call attention to deficiencies of a nominee. When concerns about Patricia Broderick arose at the end of the last session, I asked the voting members whose interest in this process were not as direct as mine to vote on my behalf. Were I seated with the full rights and privileges of a U.S. Senator, I would vote to confirm Judge Washington without hesitation. Today I ask you to vote yes for me, and let this Honorable Judge take his place on my jurisdiction's highest court. Senator Voinovich. For the purposes of the people that are here today, I want you to know that this very short hearing that we are having today was preceded by an enormous amount of work and time and effort on the part of the nominees and other people and I personally have reviewed your resumes and your records and the letters of recommendation in your files and have visited with representatives of the President and also the Justice Department. Just so everyone knows, they have been through the gauntlet and I am sure that they have been anticipating and looking forward to this day. I do not believe there is anything more to come before the Committee this morning. I again would like to let our nominees know that we will be moving as quickly as we can to a markup hearing sometime early in May and, hopefully, by the 15th or so, you can go to work. I know that your future colleagues are looking forward to your service in the respective courts to which you have been nominated. Congratulations to you. Judge Washington. Thank you. Mr. Glickman. Thank you. Mr. Puig-Lugo. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Senator Voinovich. The record will remain open for 5 days after the conclusion of the hearing. The meeting is adjourned. 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