The nation's oldest sitting federal judge , 98-year-old Pauline Newman, who was suspended in 2024 amid complaints about her mental health , isn't backing down after being shelved for another year for refusing to undergo "neuropsychological testing." Her legal team filed a petition last week for a rehearing en banc, urging the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to reconsider the "merits" of her case and "ongoing illegal suspension."

"Judge Newman's long-term suspension threatens judicial independence and the Constitutional separation of powers," writes the New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) in its petition, which was filed Friday following Newman's second sidelining late last month.

"Both to resolve the questions of 'exceptional importance' and to 'maintain uniformity of the

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