John Garrett Penn

John Garrett Penn (March 19, 1932 – September 9, 2007) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

Education and career Born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Penn's father was a machinist. Penn attended the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1954. Initially, Penn was a chemistry major but chose to concentrate on law due to the civil rights movement.

Federal judicial service

Penn was nominated by President Jimmy Carter on January 19, 1979, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia which had been vacated by Judge Joseph Cornelius Waddy. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 21, 1979, and received his commission on March 23, 1979. He served as Chief Judge from 1992 to 1997. He assumed senior status on March 31, 1998. Penn served in that capacity until his death on September 9, 2007, in Washington, D.C.