--- title: "Pamela M. Sargent | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/pamela-m-sargent-virginia-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Pamela M. Sargent U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia - State: Virginia - 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 - Pamela Meade Sargent is a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Virginia, serving since 1997, and will retire on September 30, 2026 - In February 2026, Judge Sargent notified the court of her intent to retire on September 30, 2026, after more than 28 years of service to the federal judiciary. - First appointed as a federal magistrate judge on December 15, 1997, after serving as a partner at the Abingdon law firm White, Bundy, McElroy, Hodges & Sargent. - Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, 1988–1989 (to H. Emory Widener, Jr.) - The Western District of Virginia has authorized the appointment of a new full-time magistrate judge in Abingdon, and a public notice is seeking applicants - Pamela Meade Sargent is a United States Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, based in Abingdon, Virginia ### Education - Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State Univ. — Communications — B.A. (1983) ### Additional information - Magistrate, District Court, W.D. Virginia, 1997-present - Professor, Univ. of Virginia - Trial Advocacy Institute, 1999–2003 - She succeeded Cynthia D. Kinser, who was appointed to the Virginia Supreme Court in 1997. - Practitioner, White, Bundy, McElroy, Hodges & Sargent, 1989–1997 - J.D. — Univ. of South Carolina — 1988 - Copy Editor, Palm Beach Post, 1984–1985 - Assistant Copy Editor, Free Lance-Star Publishing Co., 1983–1984 - Specialty: Federal magistrate judge duties, including pretrial and misdemeanor cases - For the latest updates, case information, or to contact the court, visit the official Western District of Virginia magistrate judge page. - Political Science - She handles pretrial services, misdemeanor cases, and other matters delegated under the federal magistrate judge system. ## 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=37) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=37) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=37) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9626/pamela-m-sargent/) - [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/9626/pamela-m-sargent/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Pamela M. Sargent](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9626/pamela-m-sargent/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Pamela M. Sargent](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/pamela-m-sargent-virginia-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/pamela-m-sargent-virginia-us-magistrate", "name": "Pamela M. Sargent | KnowJudges", "description": "Pamela M. Sargent, U.S. District Court for the Western District of 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-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.