--- title: "John Preston Bailey | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-preston-bailey" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # John Preston Bailey U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia - State: West Virginia - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, N.D. West Virginia, 2007-present - Bailey held the role of chief judge of the district from 2008 through 2015 - Special assistant prosecutor, Marshall County, WV, 1985-1990 - During this period, he also held the role of an assistant prosecuting attorney for Ohio County from 1985 to 1986 and as a special assistant prosecuting attorney for Marshall County from 1985 to 1990 - Assistant prosecutor, Ohio County, WV, 1985-1986 - Law clerk, Hon. Charles H. Haden II, U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia, 1976-1978 - Following law school, he clerked for Judge Charles H. Haden II of the United States District Court for the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia from 1976 to 1978 ### Education - West Virginia University College of Law in — J.D. (1976) - Dartmouth College in — B.A. (1973) ### Additional information - received his commission on March 19, 2007. - On January 9, 2007, President George W. Bush nominated Bailey to the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, filling the seat vacated by Frederick Pfarr Stamp Jr. - Private practice, Wheeling, WV, 1978-2007 - Practiced law privately in Wheeling from 1978 until his federal judicial appointment in 2007. - John Preston Bailey was born on May 2, 1951, in Wheeling, West Virginia. - Date of birth: 1951-01-01 - Birth place: Wheeling, WV ## 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.fjc.gov/node/1392541) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1392541) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1392541) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/148/john-preston-bailey/) - [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) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/148/john-preston-bailey/) - [Wikidata: John Preston Bailey](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6253373) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-preston-bailey", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-preston-bailey", "name": "John Preston Bailey | KnowJudges", "description": "John Preston Bailey, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. 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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.