James E. Gritzner

James E. Gritzner (born 1947) is a Senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

Education and career

Gritzner was born in Charles City, Iowa. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dakota Wesleyan University in 1969, and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Northern Iowa in 1974. He received a Juris Doctor from Drake University Law School in 1979. Before graduating from law school, he served as an assistant to United States Magistrate Judge Ronald Longstaff of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa from 1977 to 1979. While in private practice from 1979 to 2002, he served as a Member of the Iowa Board of Parole from 1980 to 1982.

District court service

Gritzner was nominated as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa by President George W. Bush on September 4, 2001, to a seat vacated when Charles R. Wolle took senior status. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 14, 2002, and received his commission on February 19, 2002. He served as chief judge from 2011 to 2015. He assumed senior status on March 1, 2015.

Sources

• James E. Gritzner at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.