April 16, 2012

Manchin: Thacker a ‘First-Rate’ Addition to Federal Bench

Senate confirms Hamlin native Stephanie Thacker to 4th Circuit Court of Appeals

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) congratulated West Virginia’s Stephanie Thacker today after the Senate confirmed her appointment to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.
 
Senator Manchin entered remarks into the Congressional Record congratulating Thacker and thanking his Senate colleagues for her swift confirmation. Those remarks are included below. 

“M. President, I rise today to congratulate Stephanie Dawn Thacker, a native of Hamlin, West Virginia, on her confirmation to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. 

“It is my privilege and my honor to speak on her behalf, and I am so proud she was confirmed this evening. I would like to thank my colleague Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) for nominating such a qualified jurist.

“Stephanie Thacker’s impressive background and extensive list of accomplishments in both the public and private sectors make her an exceptional judge for the 4th Circuit. She is renowned in our state for her mastery of the law and of the courtroom, and I have no doubt that she will make a highly successful federal judge.

“Ms. Thacker has dedicated much of her career to fighting some of the worst offenses in our society. As a trial attorney, Deputy Chief of Litigation, and Principal Deputy Chief, she spent several years prosecuting cases on Child Exploitation and Obscenity at the Department of Justice. Her outstanding work and leadership earned her a number of honors at the Department of Justice, including four “Meritorious” Awards and two “Special Achievement” awards. 

“Her impressive performance in prosecuting the case of United States v. Dwight York earned her the Attorney General’s “Distinguished Service” award, one of the Department’s highest honors. She was also a recipient of the Assistant Attorney General’s award for “Special Initiative” and “Outstanding Victim and Witness Service.”  

“Prior to her service at the Department of Justice, Ms. Thacker worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia, where she prosecuted a wide variety of criminal cases, including money laundering and fraud. While at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Ms. Thacker participated on the trial team prosecuting United States v. Bailey, the first case ever brought under the Violence Against Women Act.  

“Since 2006, Ms. Thacker has been a partner at the law firm of Guthrie & Thomas in Charleston, West Virginia. There, she has concentrated on cases involving product liability, environmental and toxic torts, complex commercial defense, and criminal defense. 

“Ms. Thacker was a model student in both her undergraduate and legal studies. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, magna cum laude, from Marshall University, and her J.D., Order of the Coif, from West Virginia University College of Law. While at West Virginia University she was a recipient of the Robert L. Griffin Memorial Scholarship and Editor of West Virginia Law Review’s Coal Issue. She has also recently been named “Outstanding Female Attorney” by WVU Law’s Women’s Caucus. 

“Ms. Thacker’s wide-ranging expertise in civil and criminal matters, her impressive track record in the courtroom as both a prosecutor and a defense attorney, and her outstanding academic accomplishments will make her a first-rate addition to the 4th Circuit. I am proud to call her a fellow West Virginian and I am pleased that she has finally been confirmed.”