Shira Ann Scheindlin (born January 1, 1946, in New York City) is a retired American federal judge and attorney who served on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1994 to 2013. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania (1967) and a Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law (1975). Before her judicial appointment, she worked as an assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York (1977–1981) prosecuting white-collar crime and public corruption cases, then entered private practice specializing in commercial litigation at firms including Herzfeld & Rubin and Stillman, Friedman & Shaw. President Bill Clinton nominated her to the federal bench in 1994. During her tenure, she became known for rulings on civil rights and constitutional issues, most notably in Floyd v. City of New York (2013), where she ruled that the NYPD's stop-and-frisk policy constituted unconstitutional racial profiling, leading to significant reforms. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals later removed her from the case, citing her conduct during the trial. After retiring from the bench, she joined Boies Schiller Flexner LLP as of counsel, continuing to advise on litigation matters. She has also taught as an adjunct professor at Brooklyn Law School and authored articles on judicial ethics and procedure. Her judicial legacy includes advocacy for defendants' rights and scrutiny of government overreach.