The White House confirmed Judge J. Michelle Childs is being considered on President Biden’s short list of prominent Black women who would change the face and approach of the Supreme Court.
Born in Detroit in 1966, Childs lived here until she was in her early teens. Her father, a Detroit police officer, was shot and killed in the line of duty. The tragedy and rising crime in the city eventually forced her mother to leave her job with Michigan Bell and the two moved to South Carolina.
Childs went to the University of South Florida, earning her business degree before going to the University of South Carolina to get a masters in business, and then her law degree.
Childs is an unconventional choice for a Supreme Court nomination.
She would also be the first in five decades to come from a public university instead of an Ivy League college, a distinction that has garnered her the support of the influential congressman Jim Clyburn, who was instrumental in helping President Biden win favor with Black, southern voters, and who has already had discussions about Childs with the President.
“I just know Michelle and she has the kind of background that would offer some diversity to this court. Today, in the last 50 years, there’s never been a person to serve on the United States Supreme Court to go to a public school,” said Clyburn.
Childs would also be one of only a few Justices to be nominated without having served on a federal bench. She’s currently serving on the South Carolina District Court.
And one more crucial difference -- Childs served as a public defender, a background the President has favored with his judicial nominations during his first year in office.
She would be the first to have worked as a public defender and the first to have a criminal defense background on the high court in nearly 30 years.
Childs is also a favorite of the Presidents as well. She was also nominated to serve on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals by Biden. That court is often seen as a stepping stone to the Supreme Court. One she may just skip if she’s chosen when the President makes his choice next month.