William G. Young

William Glover Young (born September 23, 1940) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a senior U.S. district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. He was appointed in 1985 by President Ronald Reagan, and he served as chief judge of the district from 1999 to 2005. Young was a judge of the Massachusetts Superior Court from 1978 to 1985.

Early life and career Born in Huntington, New York, He received a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1967. He was a Captain in the United States Army from 1962 to 1964.

Federal judicial service Young was first nominated by President Ronald Reagan on September 11, 1984, to the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, to a new seat created by 98 Stat. 333, but the nomination lapsed without a Senate vote. Reagan renominated him on March 8, 1985. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 3, 1985, and received his commission on April 4, 1985. He served as chief judge from 1999 to 2005. In January 2024, Young blocked the $3.8 billion merger of Spirit Airlines and JetBlue, saying that it would violate the Clayton Act, which "was designed to prevent anticompetitive harms for consumers". Ten months later, Spirit Airlines announced plans to file for bankruptcy. On May 2, 2026, it ceased operations.

Notable cases Patent cases As a federal judge, Young has heard patent cases relating to biotechnology and pharmaceuticals and also heard computer-related patent cases, including a patent infringement suit by a small company against RealNetworks. The jury found that the patents were invalid and the case was affirmed upon appeal.

Criminal cases Young has heard many criminal cases both as a Massachusetts state judge and as a federal judge, including the "Big Dan" rape case, the shoe bomber case, and the Boston Strangler case.

He was the trial judge in Massachusetts state court for the highly publicized "Big Dan" rape case which was the inspiration for the movie The Accused. He sentenced Richard Reid, better known as the shoe bomber, to three life terms plus 110 years in prison.

Constitutional law cases Singer v. City of Newton - drones Young heard Singer v. City of Newton, the first case in the United States on the constitutionality of state and local regulation of drones (unmanned aerial vehicles). He partially invalidated the city ordinance because it was preempted by Federal Aviation Administration regulations.

AAUP et al v. Marco Rubio - free speech

Young heard American Association of University Professors et al. v. Marco Rubio, which he called "perhaps the most important to fall within the jurisdiction of this district court". In his decision, he addressed the question "whether non-citizens lawfully present here in United States actually have the same free speech rights as the rest of us". Young answered, "unequivocally 'yes, they do.' 'No law' means 'no law.' The First Amendment does not draw President Trump's invidious distinction and it is not to be found in our history or jurisprudence."

Young further addressed ICE agents' practice of wearing masks:

Young's decision concluded:

American Public Health Association v. National Institutes of Health In American Public Health Association v. National Institutes of Health, United States Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh accused Young of defying its shadow docket orders. Justice Stephen Breyer defended Young, and Young apologized.

Environmental Defense Fund, Inc. v. Wright