Ricardo Hinojosa

Ricardo H. Hinojosa (born January 24, 1950) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas and served as the chairman of the United States Sentencing Commission.

Education and career

Hinojosa was born in Rio Grande City, Texas. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas, Austin in 1972, and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 1975. He was a law clerk to the Texas Supreme Court from 1975 to 1976. He was then in private practice in McAllen, Texas, until 1983. In 2015, he received the Presidential Citation from UT Austin.

Federal judicial service On April 12, 1983, Hinojosa was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas vacated by Judge Woodrow Bradley Seals. Hinojosa was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 4, 1983, and received his commission on May 5, 1983. He was appointed as a commissioner on the United States Sentencing Commission by then President George W. Bush in 2003. He served as chief judge from 2009 to 2016. He assumed senior status on May 21, 2025, Hinojosa left the court on October 1, 2025.