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Fromentin was born and raised in France, where he later became a Roman Catholic priest. He fled the country during the [[Wikipedia:French Revolution|French Revolution]] and arrived in the United States. At first settling in Pennsylvania, he then moved to Maryland and worked as a schoolteacher and a priest. By the early 1800s, Fromentin decided to leave the church and moved to Louisiana, which was being purchased by the United States. He settled in New Orleans and became a lawyer.
Fromentin was a member of the territorial house of representatives from 1807 to 1811. He was part of the constitutional convention that developed Louisiana's state constitution when it became a state in 1812. In 1813, he was elected to the [[United States Senate]] from Louisiana, and served for one term, retiring in 1819. He may have been the first former priest to serve in Congress.
Upon his retirement, Fromentin returned to Louisiana and became judge of the New Orleans criminal court in [[1821]], but was quickly appointed by President [[Wikipedia:James Monroe|James Monroe]] to a [[U.S. District Court|federal judgeship]] in West Florida, which was being ceded by Spain to the United States. On [[June 27]], Secretary of State [[Wikipedia:John Quincy Adams|John Quincy Adams]] sent Fromentin his commission and ordered him to Pensacola.
