A member of the Republican Party, he was nominated by President George H. W. Bush on August 3, 1990, to a seat vacated by Hugh Gibson, confirmed by the United States Senate on September 28, 1990, and received his commission on October 1, 1990.

His tenure as a United States District Court judge was marred from 2001 on by a series of disciplinary actions, culminating in his impeachment and resignation in 2009.

Prior to appointment on the federal bench, Kent was a partner with the firm Royston, Rayzor, Vickery and Williams in Galveston, Texas.

[16] In August 2007, Chief Judge Hayden Wilson Head Jr. of the Southern District of Texas issued an order indicating that Kent would not be hearing cases between September 1, 2007, and January 1, 2008.

On December 20, 2007, the 5th Circuit issued an order indicating that there was an ongoing Department of Justice criminal investigation into the allegations underlying a complaint to the Judicial Council regarding Kent.

[23][25] However, in May 2009, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in an opinion written by Chief Judge Edith Jones, denied Kent's disability status, and instead recommended his impeachment.

[26] The requirement of Article III that federal judges "shall, at stated times, receive for their services, a compensation, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office" may preclude action against his salary barring impeachment.

[4] Kent pleaded guilty in February 2009 to obstruction of justice for lying to a judicial committee investigating an allegation he sexually harassed an employee.

In pronouncing sentence over Kent, visiting Judge Roger Vinson stated, "Your wrongful conduct is a huge black X ... a stain on the judicial system itself, a matter of concern in the federal courts".

[28] In November 2009, he was moved to a Florida state prison Demily CI, a faith based education program where he taught GED classes .

[29] In July 2011, Kent was released on furlough to attend his daughter's wedding, after which he served out the remainder of his sentence confined to his home in West Texas.

431[33]), which were referred to the House Judiciary Committee which two days later voted to begin impeachment proceedings as a reaction to Kent's refusal to resign.

Chief Judge Edith Jones wrote that "a claimant should not profit from his own wrongdoing by engaging in criminal misconduct and then collecting a federal retirement salary for the disability related to the prosecution".

[7] The vote for impeachment in the House was scheduled to take place on June 18,[39] but it was postponed until the next day due to prolonged debate over an appropriations bill.

[10][11] On June 30, President Obama accepted his resignation[12] and on July 20, the House of Representatives passed a resolution[13] asking the Senate to end the impeachment trial against Kent.