Samuel Frederick Biery Jr.

Samuel Frederick "Fred" Biery Jr. (born 1947) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States district judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. He was appointed in 1994 by President Bill Clinton. He served as a Texas state court judge from 1979 to 1994.

Early life and education

Biery was born in 1947, in McAllen, Texas, United States. On April 29, 2013, his ruling in 35 Bar and Grille LLC, et al. v. The City of San Antonio gained notoriety for its puns, sexual innuendo, and double entendres. On August 20, 2025, Biery enjoined Texas from displaying the Ten Commandments in every classroom despite a state law passed in June.

In June 2022, Biery said he does not read opinions handed down from the Fifth Circuit, but he later said that was "courtroom banter".

Notable rulings

In January 2026, Biery blocked the immediate deportation of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, whose seizure by immigration officers in Minnesota and rapid transport to a detention center in Texas sparked international outrage. Several days later, in a scathing opinion, he also ordered the release of the boy and his father from immigration detention.