DETROIT (AP) – The White House says President Barack Obama has nominated Wayne County Circuit Judge Gershwin Drain to a seat on U.S. District Court in Detroit.

In a news release, Obama describes Drain as someone who will be a “thoughtful and diligent judge” on the federal court. The nomination requires U.S. Senate confirmation.

Drain has been a Wayne County circuit judge since 1997. Before that, he sat on the Detroit Recorders Court, which served the city until it was merged with the county circuit court. Drain was a judge on Detroit’s 36th District Court in 1986-87.

Drain is a graduate of Western Michigan University and the University of Michigan law school. He has worked as a federal public defender and as a lawyer for Detroit’s transportation department.

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