Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Daniel C. Moreno, Ronald L. Abrams, and Gina M. Brandt to three trial court bench vacancies in the Fourth Judicial District in Hennepin County.  The vacancies are as a result of the resignation of the Honorable Lorie S. Gildea, the retirement of the Honorable Isabel Gomez, and the Supreme Court's conversion of a vacant Fourth District referee position into a new district court judgeship.  Forty-nine people applied for these positions.

Moreno is an assistant Fourth Judicial District public defender in Hennepin County, a position he has held since 1991.  He was also a law clerk in the Hennepin County public defender's office from 1987 to 1990.  Moreno earned his juris doctorate degree from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1990, and his bachelor of arts degree from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1986.

"For 15 years, Dan has provided representation to clients who can not afford an attorney.  He has treated every client with respect and given their case the individual attention it deserves," Governor Pawlenty said.  "He also volunteers extensively in the Latino community."

Moreno is a founding member of the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association, where he served on its Board of Directors; past chair of Centro Cultural Chicano; was a founding member of the Minneapolis Mayor's Latino Advisory Committee, where he chaired the Public Safety Committee; past board chair of the University of Minnesota President's Latino Advisory Committee; and a member of the Prostitution Intervention Project Task Force.  He has also been a member of the Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, and the Minnesota Minority Lawyers Association.

Moreno, 42, was born in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and resides in Minneapolis with his wife, Jean Burdorf, and their two children, Thomas, 6, and Sam, 4.

Abrams is a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives.  He has been a state representative since 1989, has served as Speaker Pro Tempore since 1999, and chaired the House Tax Committee from 1999 through 2004.  He was a Minnesota House of Representatives Committee Administrator from 1985 to 1986, an attorney and area manager with Group W. Cable Television in Minneapolis from 1980 through 1984, and an attorney with the law firm of Briggs and Morgan in St. Paul from 1977 to 1980.  Abrams earned his juris doctorate degree from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1977, and his bachelor of arts degree summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota in 1974.

"Ron has a well-earned reputation for fairness as a legislator, committee chair, and speaker pro-tem that crosses party lines," Governor Pawlenty said.  "His intellect, leadership, and sense of humor will be a great asset on the Hennepin County bench."

Abrams is a member of the Tyrone Guthrie Theater Board of Directors, League of Women Voters, Citizens League, TwinWest Chamber of Commerce, and Greater Wayzata Area Chamber of Commerce, and has served on the Minnesota Orchestral Association Board of Directors, Minneapolis Art Institute Board of Trustees, and Minnesota Chapter American Jewish Committee Board of Directors.

Abrams, 54, was born in Minneapolis, and resides in Minnetonka with his wife, Joanne, and their two children, Benjamin, 20, and Alexander, 17.

Brandt is an associate attorney with the Eagan law firm of Campbell Knutson, where she primarily handles the Plymouth city prosecution work.  She has been an attorney with the firm since 1999.  Brandt was an assistant Carver County Attorney from 1996 to 1999, an assistant Hutchinson city attorney and chief of criminal prosecution from 1995 to 1996, an associate attorney with the law firm of Arnold and McDowell in St. Louis Park and Hutchinson, as well as an assistant Hutchinson city attorney from 1993 to 1995, and a First Judicial District law clerk for Judge Philip Kanning in Carver County from 1991 to 1993.  Brandt earned her juris doctorate degree from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul in 1991, and her bachelor of arts degree from the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph in 1988.

"Gina's legal practice requires that she appear in court frequently on a wide-range of areas of law.  She has a strong work ethic and an enthusiasm for the justice system," Governor Pawlenty said.  "Her professional background and personality will serve her well as a district court judge."

Brandt is a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association, where she serves on its Criminal Section; Eighth District Bar Association, where she is a past president; Dakota County Bar Association; Minnesota State DWI Task Force; National District Attorneys Association; Hennepin County Suburban Prosecutors Association; Carver County Justice Advisory Council; and Burnsville Domestic Abuse Response Team.  She volunteers annually with Project Stand Down, is an alumni student mentor for the College of St. Benedict, and assists student attorneys from William Mitchell College of Law on court appearances and supervises them in trials. 

Brandt, 39, was born in Chicago, Illinois, and resides in St. Bonifacius with her husband, John, and their two children.