--- title: "Sarah Evans Barker | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sarah-e-barker" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Sarah Evans Barker U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana - State: Indiana - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official judge-specific and circuitwide procedural guidance has been located for this profile. ## Biography ### Professional career - Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, appointed in 1984 and serving as Chief Judge from 1994 to 2001, with senior status since June 30, 2014 - Service: held the role of a judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana until June 30, 2014, when she assumed senior status - Judge, District Court, S.D. Indiana, 1984-2014 - Chief Judge: Led the court from 1994 to 2000/2001 - U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, 1981-1984 - First assistant U.S. attorney, Southern District of Indiana, 1976-1977 - Assistant U.S. attorney, Southern District of Indiana, 1972-1976 ### Education - Indiana University ### Additional information - Charles H. Percy re-election campaign, 1972-present - Gilbert Gude, MD, 1969-present - Appointment: Nominated by President Ronald Reagan on February 14, 1984, confirmed by the Senate on March 13, 1984, and commissioned March 14, 1984 — the first female federal judge in Indiana - Private practice, Indianapolis, IN, 1977-1981 - Special counsel to U.S. Senate Government Operations Committee, permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, 1971-1972 - Charles H. Percy, IL, 1969-1971 - Date of birth: 1943-01-01 - Director of research/director of scheduling and advance, U.S. Sen. - Legislative assistant, U.S. Sen. - Legislative assistant, U.S. Rep. ## 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 ### courtroom technology Scope: judge specific Judge-specific source Evidence excerpt: Counsel should expect to bring with him/her whatever personal computer he/she expects to use during a trial or proceeding. Counsel should familiarize himself/herself with the Court’s electronic evidence display system in advance of the proceeding to avoid any missteps or awkwardness. 2. [Courtroom%20Procedures%20SEB.pdf](https://www.insd.uscourts.gov/sites/insd/files/Courtroom%20Procedures%20SEB.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-24 ### 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/1377436) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377436) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377436) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/170/sarah-evans-barker/) - [Courtroom%20Procedures%20SEB.pdf](https://www.insd.uscourts.gov/sites/insd/files/Courtroom%20Procedures%20SEB.pdf) - [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/170/sarah-evans-barker/) - [Wikidata: Sarah Evans Barker](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7422287) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sarah-e-barker", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sarah-e-barker", "name": "Sarah Evans Barker | KnowJudges", "description": "Sarah Evans Barker, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. 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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.