--- title: "David D. Leshner | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/david-d-leshner-california-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # David D. Leshner U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California - State: California - Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-29 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - U.S. Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court - Southern District of California, from 2022-08-15 - U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, appointed August 15, 2022, and stationed in San Diego - Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Southern District of California, 2007–2022 - He also held the role of the lawyer representative for the Southern District of California from 2018 until his judicial appointment - Law Clerk, U.S. District Court - Central District of California, 1999–2000 (to A. Howard Matz) ### Education ### Additional information - First Assistant U.S. Attorney (2021–2022) - Chief of the Criminal Division (2019–2021) - Practitioner, 2000–2007, Los Angeles, CA - J.D. — Washington & Lee Univ. — 1999 - B.A. — Univ. of Virginia — 1994 - overseeing daily operations of the office - Before joining the bench, Leshner had a 15-year career as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California FBA San Diego. - Earlier positions as an Assistant U.S. Attorney prosecuting cases involving violent crime, racketeering, drug trafficking, immigration, fraud, tax evasion, and child exploitation - His work earned him the U.S. Department of Justice’s John Marshall Award in Trial Litigation. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=96) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=96) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=96) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [Official biography source for David D. Leshner](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=96) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: David D. Leshner](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) - [Official biography source for David D. Leshner](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=96) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: David D. Leshner](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/david-d-leshner-california-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/david-d-leshner-california-us-magistrate", "name": "David D. Leshner | KnowJudges", "description": "David D. Leshner, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. 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Leshner", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/david-d-leshner-california-us-magistrate" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 8 | 0 | Not available | 0 | | 2y | 11 | 1 | Not available | 1 | | 5y | 31 | 21 | 12.3 | 21 | | 10y | 36 | 25 | 12.8 | 25 | Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/ ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.