Joe Biden nominates Kansas prosecutor Jabari Wamble for seat on federal appeals court

President Joe Biden nominated a Kansas federal prosecutor for a federal judgeship Tuesday, the first judicial appointee with a connection to the state since he took office last year.

Biden tapped Jabari Wamble, an assistant U.S. attorney based in Kansas City, Kan., for a vacant position on the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Wamble has worked as a federal prosecutor for more than a decade.

He previously served as an assistant attorney general under Kansas Attorney General Stephen Six from 2011 to 2014. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas and University of Kansas Law School and is the son-in-law of Missouri Congressman Emmanuel Cleaver.

Kansas has two seats on the 10th Circuit, the federal appellate court that covers Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Wamble will replace Chief Judge Mary Beck Briscoe, who retired in March.

U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., praised Wamble as "a dedicated public servant" who has "demonstrated legal skill and interest in justice throughout his professional career" but didn't commit to supporting his nomination.

"I look forward to learning more about Mr. Wamble’s views, including how he sees the role of a judge under the U.S. Constitution, in his upcoming Senate Judiciary Committee hearing," Moran said in a statement.

Biden will have another appointment to make in the coming weeks that will impact Kansas, with U.S. District Court Judge Julie Robinson's retirement in January creating a vacancy on the federal district court that will need to be filled.

Andrew Bahl is a senior statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at abahl@gannett.com or by phone at 443-979-6100.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Joe Biden nominates Kansas prosecutor as federal appeals court judge