Latest local news, weather and high school sports from the Midlands

WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor defended herself Tuesday against charges that her speeches and rulings show racial bias, telling a Senate panel vetting her nomination that critics had misunderstood her record.

"I want to state upfront, unequivocally and without doubt: I do not believe that any racial, ethnic or gender group has an advantage in sound judging. I do believe that every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge, regardless of their background or life experiences," Sotomayor said.

Sotomayor, President Barack Obama's pick to become the high court's first Hispanic and third woman, was responding to sharp criticism of a 2001 speech in which she suggested a "wise Latina" would usually reach better conclusions than a white man without similar experiences.

In her second day before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sotomayor said her background as a trial and appellate court judge had taught her to keep an open mind and not come to any cases with a prejudgment of the outcome.

The 55-year-old appeals court judge said a much-discussed ruling she and two other judges made against white New Haven, Conn. firefighters who alleged reverse discrimination after being denied promotions wasn't about affirmative action or quotas.

"The issue was not what we would do or not do, because we were following precedent," Sotomayor said, referring to her panel on the 2nd Circuit, whose ruling was overturned late last month by the Supreme Court.

Prompted by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Judiciary chairman who lined up a series of friendly questions for Sotomayor to help her counter GOP criticism, Sotomayor said she would "absolutely" have reached a different result in light of the Supreme Court's reversal.