Kenneth King
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Biography
Judge Kenneth J. King was raised on the southwest side of Detroit. He graduated from Detroit Southwestern High School in 1988, earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice from Michigan State University in 1992 and his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law in 1995.
Judge King was admitted to the State Bar of Michigan and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in May 1996. He worked as an attorney for the Misdemeanor Defender’s Office, an Associate Attorney for Bell & Gardner, P.C., and then later maintained his own general practice firm before accepting a position as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney with the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office in 1998. In the seven years employed with the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, he was assigned to the Trial Division as a Principal/Special Assignment Attorney; the Homicide Unit; the Community Prosecution Unit; the Research, Training & Appeals Division; and the Forfeiture Unit.
In 2004, Judge King accepted a position with the Department of Wayne County Executive as an Executive Administrator in the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Facility, where he reviewed policy and procedure, as well as investigated allegations of abuse and misconduct by employees on residents. He also chaired and co-chaired special projects initiated by the County Executive.
In June, 2006, Judge King was appointed Judge in Detroit’s 36th District Court by Michigan Governor, Jennifer Granholm. In 2010 Judge King was appointed Chief Judge Pro Tem and was appointed to serve as the court’s Chief Judge from January 2012 to August 2013 by the Michigan Supreme Court.As Chief Judge, Judge King presided over the largest and busiest District Court in the State of Michigan. Judge King managed approximately four hundred employees, thirty Judges, six Magistrates, a thirty-five million dollar budget, negotiated contracts with labor unions, made decisions on the hiring and terminations of employees, and made decisions on policy and procedure that impacted every member of the court. Judge King is currently the Presiding Judge over the Criminal Division where he presides over every homicide, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse and felony domestic violence case in the city of Detroit.
In addition to fulfilling his responsibilities as judge in one of the busiest courts in the nation, Judge King enjoys mentoring children and young adults. He was involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters and mentored a young boy. Judge King was also an Adjunct Instructor at Henry Ford College where he taught Political Science, Ferris State University where he taught Criminal Law and Procedure and is currently an Adjunct Instructor at Wayne State University where he teaches Constitutional Criminal Procedure..
Judge King has membership in many civic organizations including the State Bar of Michigan; the Association of Black Judges of Michigan; the Michigan District Court Judges Association; the Wolverine Bar Association; the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, and sits on the Board of Directors for the Detroit Academy of Arts & Sciences, to name a few.
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Courses taught by Kenneth King
Fall Term 2024 (future)
Spring-Summer Term 2024 (current)
Winter Term 2024
Fall Term 2023
Spring-Summer Term 2023
Spring-Summer Term 2022