Thad Heartfield

Who is Thad Heartfield?

Thad Heartfield is a district judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in Beaumont, Texas. He was nominated by President Bill Clinton on January 11, 1995, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 17, 1995 and received his commission on March 17, 1995. He served as chief judge from 2003 through 2008.

He graduated from St. Mary's University, Texas with a B.A. in 1962 and received a J.D. from the St. Mary's University School of Law in 1965.

In 2009, Judge Heartfield presided over Doe v. Silsbee Independent School District. The plaintiff was a cheerleader who was ordered by her high school to cheer for a football and basketball player named Rakheem Bolton, who she had accused of raping her and who had pleaded guilty to assaulting her. H.S. refused and was kicked off the team. She sued, claiming a violation of her First Amendment right to free speech. Judge Heartfield granted the school district's motion to dismiss. Judge Heartfield's decision was affirmed by Judges Edith Brown Clement, Emilio M. Garza, and Priscilla Owen of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. H.S. was ordered to pay the school $45,000 in legal fees for filing a "frivolous" lawsuit.