# United States District Court for the District of Kansas

The United States District Court for the District of Kansas (in case citations, D. Kan.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Kansas. The Court operates out of the Robert J. Dole United States Courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas, the Frank Carlson Federal Building in Topeka, and the United States Courthouse in Wichita. The District of Kansas was created in 1861, replacing the territorial court that preceded it, and President Abraham Lincoln appointed Archibald Williams as the Court's first judge.
Appeals from the District of Kansas are made to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
As of February 22, 2025 the acting United States attorney is Duston J. Slinkard. On March 12, 2015, Ronald L. Miller, most recently police chief of Topeka, Kansas, was confirmed as U.S. Marshal.
The clerk of court is Skyler B. O'Hara, who is located in Topeka.

## Current judges

As of December 2, 2022:
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Term of service | Term of service | Appointed by |
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Active | Chief | Senior | Appointed by |
| 27 | Chief Judge | Eric F. Melgren | Wichita | 1956 | 2008–present | 2021–present | — | G.W. Bush |
| 28 | District Judge | Daniel D. Crabtree | Kansas City | 1956 | 2014–present | — | — | Obama |
| 29 | District Judge | John W. Broomes | Wichita | 1969 | 2018–present | — | — | Trump |
| 30 | District Judge | Holly Teeter | Kansas City | 1979 | 2018–present | — | — | Trump |
| 31 | District Judge | Toby Crouse | Topeka | 1975 | 2020–present | — | — | Trump |
| 32 | District Judge | vacant | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 21 | Senior Judge | John Watson Lungstrum | Kansas City | 1945 | 1991–2010 | 2001–2007 | 2010–present | G.H.W. Bush |
| 22 | Senior Judge | Monti Belot | inactive | 1943 | 1991–2008 | — | 2008–present | G.H.W. Bush |
| 23 | Senior Judge | Kathryn H. Vratil | Kansas City | 1949 | 1992–2014 | 2008–2014 | 2014–present | G.H.W. Bush |
| 26 | Senior Judge | Julie A. Robinson | Kansas City | 1957 | 2001–2022 | 2017–2021 | 2022–present | G.W. Bush |

## Vacancies and pending nominations

| Seat | Prior judge's duty station | Seat last held by | Vacancy reason | Date of vacancy | Nominee | Date of nomination |
| 5 | Kansas City | Julie A. Robinson | Senior status | January 14, 2022 | – | – |
| 7 | Kansas City | Daniel D. Crabtree | Senior status | August 11, 2025 | – | – |
| 8 | Wichita | Eric F. Melgren | Senior status | September 1, 2025 | – | – |

## Former judges

| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
| 1 | Archibald Williams | KS | 1801–1863 | 1861–1863 | — | — | Lincoln | death |
| 2 | Mark W. Delahay | KS | 1828–1879 | 1863–1873 | — | — | Lincoln | resignation |
| 3 | Cassius Gaius Foster | KS | 1837–1899 | 1874–1899 | — | — | Grant | retirement |
| 4 | William Cather Hook | KS | 1857–1921 | 1899–1903 | — | — | McKinley | elevation to 8th Cir. |
| 5 | John Calvin Pollock | KS | 1857–1937 | 1903–1937 | — | — | T. Roosevelt | death |
| 6 | George Thomas McDermott | KS | 1886–1937 | 1928–1929 | — | — | Coolidge | elevation to 10th Cir. |
| 7 | Richard Joseph Hopkins | KS | 1873–1943 | 1929–1943 | — | — | Hoover | death |
| 8 | Guy T. Helvering | KS | 1878–1946 | 1943–1946 | — | — | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 9 | Arthur Johnson Mellott | KS | 1888–1957 | 1945–1957 | 1948–1957 | — | Truman | death |
| 10 | Delmas Carl Hill | KS | 1906–1989 | 1949–1961 | 1957–1961 | — | Truman | elevation to 10th Cir. |
| 11 | Arthur Jehu Stanley Jr. | KS | 1901–2001 | 1958–1971 | 1961–1971 | 1971–2001 | Eisenhower | death |
| 12 | Wesley E. Brown | KS | 1907–2012 | 1962–1979 | 1971–1977 | 1979–2012 | Kennedy | death |
| 13 | Henry George Templar | KS | 1904–1988 | 1962–1974 | — | 1974–1988 | Kennedy | death |
| 14 | Frank Gordon Theis | KS | 1911–1998 | 1967–1981 | 1977–1981 | 1981–1998 | L. Johnson | death |
| 15 | Earl Eugene O'Connor | KS | 1922–1998 | 1971–1992 | 1981–1992 | 1992–1998 | Nixon | death |
| 16 | Richard Dean Rogers | KS | 1921–2016 | 1975–1989 | — | 1989–2016 | Ford | death |
| 17 | Dale E. Saffels | KS | 1921–2002 | 1979–1990 | — | 1990–2002 | Carter | death |
| 18 | Patrick F. Kelly | KS | 1929–2007 | 1980–1995 | 1992–1995 | 1995–1996 | Carter | retirement |
| 19 | Sam A. Crow | KS | 1926–2022 | 1981–1996 | — | 1996–2022 | Reagan | death |
| 20 | George Thomas Van Bebber | KS | 1931–2005 | 1989–2000 | 1995–2000 | 2000–2005 | G.H.W. Bush | death |
| 24 | J. Thomas Marten | KS | 1951–present | 1996–2017 | 2014–2017 | 2017–2021 | Clinton | retirement |
| 25 | Carlos Murguia | KS | 1957–present | 1999–2020 | — | — | Clinton | resignation |
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 14, 1863, confirmed by the United States Senate on March 15, 1864, and received commission the same day.
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on March 8, 1950, and received commission on March 9, 1950.

## Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

## Succession of seats

Seat 1 :
| Seat established on January 29, 1861 by 12 Stat. 126 ||
| Williams | 1861–1863 |
| Delahay | 1864–1873 |
| Foster | 1874–1899 |
| Hook | 1899–1903 |
| Pollock | 1903–1937 |
| Seat abolished on January 24, 1937 (temporary judgeship expired) ||
Seat 2 :
| Seat established on January 7, 1928 pursuant to 40 Stat. 1156 (temporary) ||
| McDermott | 1928–1929 |
| Hopkins | 1929–1943 |
| Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 1 on January 24, 1937 ||
| Helvering | 1943–1946 |
| Seat abolished on July 4, 1946 (temporary judgeship expired) ||
Seat 3 :
| Seat established on October 16, 1945 by 59 Stat. 545 (temporary) ||||
| Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 2 on July 4, 1946 ||||
| Mellott | 1945–1957 |
| Stanley, Jr. | 1958–1971 |
| O'Connor | 1971–1992 |
| Vratil | 1992–2014 |
| Teeter | 2018–present |
Seat 4 :
| Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 ||||
| Hill | 1950–1961 |
| Brown | 1962–1979 |
| Kelly | 1980–1995 |
| Marten | 1996–2017 |
| Broomes | 2018–present |
Seat 5 :
| Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 ||||
| Templar | 1962–1974 |
| Rogers | 1975–1989 |
| Van Bebber | 1989–2000 |
| Robinson | 2001–2022 |
| vacant | 2022–present |
Seat 6 :
| Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 (temporary) ||||
| Seat made permanent on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 ||||
| Theis | 1967–1981 |
| Crow | 1981–1996 |
| Murguia | 1999–2020 |
| Crouse | 2020–present |
Seat 7 :
| Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 ||||
| Saffels | 1979–1990 |
| Lungstrum | 1991–2010 |
| Crabtree | 2014–present |
Seat 8 :
| Seat established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 (temporary) ||||
| Belot | 1991–2008 |
| Seat made permanent on December 23, 2024 by 138 Stat. 2693 ||||
| Melgren | 2008–present |

## U.S. Attorneys

* Andrew Jackson Isacks 1854-57
* William Weer 1857-58
* Alson C. Davis 1858-61
* Thomas Means 1861
* John T. Burris 1861
* Robert Crozier 1861-64
* James S. Emory 1864-67
* Samuel Riggs 1867-69
* Albert H. Horton 1869-73
* Cyrus I. Scofield 1873
* George R. Peck 1874-79
* James R. Hallowell 1879-85
* William C. Perry 1885-89
* Joseph W. Ady 1889-93
* William C. Perry 1893-97
* Isaac E. Lambert 1897-1901
* John S. Dean 1901-05
* Harry J. Bone 1905-13
* Fred Robertson 1913-21
* Albert F. Williams 1921-30
* Sardius M. Brewster 1930-34
* Summerfield S. Alexander 1934-42
* George H. West 1942-45
* Randolph Carpenter 1945-48
* Lester Luther 1948-52
* Eugene W. Davis 1952-53
* George Templar 1953-54
* William C. Farmer 1954-58
* William C. Leonard 1958-61
* Newell A. George 1961-68
* Benjamin E. Franklin 1968-69
* Robert J. Roth 1969-75
* E. Edward Johnson 1975-77
* James P. Buchele 1977-81
* Jim J. Marquez 1981-84
* Benjamin L. Burgess, Jr. 1984-90
* Lee Thompson 1990-93
* Jackie N. Williams 1993
* Randy Rathbun 1993-96
* Jackie N. Williams 1996-2001
* Eric Melgren 2002-2008
* Marietta Parker 2008-2009
* Lanny Welch 2009-2010
* Barry Grissom 2010-2016
* Stephen McAllister 2018-2021
* Duston J. Slinkard 2021-2023
* Kate E. Brubacher 2023-2025
* Duston J. Slinkard (acting) 2025-