--- title: "Sunshine Suzanne Sykes | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sunshine-suzanne-sykes" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Sunshine Suzanne Sykes U.S. District Court for the Central District of California · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Central District of California - State: California - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-08-16 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, C.D. California, CA, 2020-present - Judge, Superior Court of California, County of Riverside, 2013-2022 - Deputy County Counsel, Riverside County Office of County Counsel, 2005-2013 - Deputy county counsel, Riverside County, California, 2005-2013 - Practitioner, Juvenile Defense Panel, Southwest Justice Center, 2003-2005 - Contract attorney, Juvenile Defense Panel, Murrieta, California, 2003-2005 ### Education - Stanford Law School — J.D. (2001) - Stanford University — B.A. (1997) ### Additional information - Practitioner, California Indian Legal Services, 2001-2003 - Staff attorney, California Indian Legal Services, Sacramento, California, 2001-2003 - English, with honors — Stanford University — 1997 - Date of birth: 1974-01-01 - Birth place: Tuba City, AZ ## 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://apps.cacd.uscourts.gov/Jps/) - [Official roster](https://apps.cacd.uscourts.gov/Jps/) - [apps.cacd.uscourts.gov judicial profile or roster](https://apps.cacd.uscourts.gov/Jps/) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/13935/sunshine-suzanne-sykes/) - [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/13935/sunshine-suzanne-sykes/) - [Judge Sunshine Suzanne Sykes](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11976531) - [Wikidata: Sunshine Sykes](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110137632) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/13935/sunshine-suzanne-sykes/) - [Judge Sunshine Suzanne Sykes](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11976531) - [Wikidata: Sunshine Sykes](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110137632) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sunshine-suzanne-sykes", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sunshine-suzanne-sykes", "name": "Sunshine Suzanne Sykes | KnowJudges", "description": "Sunshine Suzanne Sykes, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. 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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.