(Developing: Will be updated)
President Donald Trump on Thursday nominated Kansas Solicitor General Toby Crouse to a federal judgeship.
Crouse had been serving as the state’s top appellate litigator since 2018 when Attorney General Derek Schmidt named him solicitor general.
He was the state’s top litigator on the school finance case and he successfully argued two cases for the state before the U.S. Supreme Court last fall.
He also was involved in the appeal of a federal court decision blocking the state’s proof-of-citizenship law for registering voters. The state lost that case, which former Secretary of State Kris Kobach tried on his own in district court.
He previously was a partner in the Kansas law firm of Foulston Siefkin, where he represented clients in trial and appellate courts.
He also served as a law clerk to Judge Mary Beck Briscoe on the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals and for U.S. District Judge Monti L. Belot.
Crouse earned a bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University and his law degree from the University of Kansas School of Law.
Crouse would replace former U.S. District Judge Carlos Murgia, who resigned earlier this year after he had been reprimanded for sexual harassment.
If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, it is believed that Crouse would be assigned to the federal courthouse in Topeka with federal Judge Holly Teeter moving to Kansas City, Kan.
Schmidt urged the Senate to confirm Crouse for the job.
“Toby is well-qualified for this position and will serve capably with fidelity to the law as it is written and with proper respect for the role of states and of individual liberties in our federal system,” Schmidt said.
“Although I will be saddened to lose Toby as our solicitor general, I urge the U.S. Senate swiftly to confirm him to this important new role in public service.”
U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts tweeted out his support for Crouse’s nomination to the federal bench.
“He’s a steady, humble and talented lawyer with an impressive record of experience and I look forward to introducing a fellow K-Stater to my Senate colleagues,” Roberts tweeted Thursday afternoon.
Crouse recently argued two of the three cases Kansas had before the U.S. Supreme Court last fall.
He presented the oral arguments on behalf of the state in a case focusing on whether the Constitution permits states to abolish the insanity defense.
He also argued the case over whether it was constitutional for a Douglas County sheriff’s deputy to make a traffic stop for a revoked driver’s license based on a vehicle’s registration.
The state won both of those cases.
