--- title: "Ernest Gonzalez | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/ernest-gonzalez" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-03" --- # Ernest Gonzalez U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas - State: Texas - Role: Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Ernesto “Ernest” Gonzalez is an American federal judge serving on the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas since April 9, 2024 - Senior attorney advisor, Narcotics and Dangerous Drug Section, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 2023-2024 - 2023–2024: Senior Attorney Advisor, Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Section, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice - Assistant U.S. attorney, Eastern District of Texas, 2003-2023; lead assistant U.S. attorney, OCDETF Section, 2017-2022; chief, OCDETF Section, 2022-2023 - 2003–2023: Assistant U.S. Attorney, Eastern District of Texas; later lead assistant and chief in the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces Section - Assistant U.S. attorney, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Section, Western District of Texas, 2000-2003 - Assistant attorney general IV/special assistant U.S. attorney, Western District of Texas (on detail), Texas Attorney General's Office, 2000 - Assistant district attorney, Bexar County, Texas, 1994-2000 - 1994–2000: Assistant District Attorney, Bexar County, San Antonio ### Education - B.A. in Accounting, University of Texas at San Antonio (1987) J.D., Thurgood Marshall School of Law, Texas Southern University (1993) ### Additional information - Nomination: President Joe Biden nominated Gonzalez on January 10, 2024, to fill the seat vacated by Judge Philip Ray Martinez. - Commission: April 9, 2024. - Senate Confirmation: March 22, 2024, by a vote of 88–7. - Senior accountant, Southwest Texas Methodist Hospital, San Antonio, Texas, 1987-1991 - Born: 1962, San Antonio, Texas ## 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 ### electronic trial exhibits Scope: courtwide The Western District of Texas publishes JERS guidance for electronically capturing trial evidence and provides evidence-presentation equipment to members of the bar practicing in the district. Evidence excerpt: The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas uses the Jury Evidence Recording System (JERS) to capture evidence electronically during a trial. The Court provides evidence presentation equipment to any member of the bar practicing within the Western District of Texas. [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### electronic exhibit submission Scope: courtwide For JERS electronic exhibit submission, the Western District of Texas publishes a single-storage-device requirement and directs parties to submit files by the deadline set by the assigned courtroom deputy. Evidence excerpt: All files must be provided on a single storage device such as a CD, DVD, or USB drive. ... All files must be submitted based on the deadline set by the CRD associated with your case. [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### 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.fjc.gov/node/13761581) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761581) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761581) - [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) - [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) - [Judge Ernest Gonzalez](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761581) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/ernest-gonzalez", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/ernest-gonzalez", "name": "Ernest Gonzalez | KnowJudges", "description": "Ernest Gonzalez, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. 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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.