Who is Moxila Upadhyaya, Indian-American judge who presided over Trump's election case?

In the ongoing criminal charges against Donald Trump, the case took a new turn on Tuesday when the former US President pleaded not guilty while being accusedof hampering the outcome of the 2020 US presidential election. The arraignment took place in a federal court, where he was released on his own cognizance, as this marked his third arrest within the last four months, with cases filed against him in New York City and Florida.

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Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya read from the 45-page indictment presented by special counsel Jack Smith the four criminal offences and the potential maximum jail sentences Trump might face.

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Moxila Upadhyaya announced the next hearing date on August 28, which will take place in the court of District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, who will preside over the eventual trial.

Moxila Upadhaya: Indian -American Magistrate Judge with a distinguished legal career

Moxila Upadhaya hails from the state of Gujarat in India and was raised near Kansas, Missouri. She was appointed as the US Magistrate Judge last year on 7 September. She earned her Doctor of Law or Juris Doctor (JD) from American University, Washington College of Law, graduating cum laude in 2003.

She is a 2000 magna cum laude graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism and also earned a Bachelor of Arts with honours in Latin Studies from the University of Missouri.

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After graduating from law school, Upadhyaya served a two-year term as a law clerk to Eric T Washington, former Chief Judge of the DC Court of Appeals.

She then joined Venable LLP’s Washington, DC office, where she practised complex commercial and administrative litigation. She left Venable in 2011-12 to serve as the first law clerk to Robert L Wilkins (currently the US Circuit Judge for the DC Circuit) during his tenure as a district judge in this court.

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During her time as an associate and ultimately partner at Venable, according to her resume, Upadhyaya devoted her pro bono practice to representing indigent clients in post-conviction proceedings, including representing clients who raised challenges under the DC Innocence Protection Act and the DC Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act.

For her work in this capacity, the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project awarded Judge Upadhyaya its Defender of Innocence Award in 2009 and Venable named her Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year in 2006.

(With inputs from agencies)

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