Harlington Wood, Jr.

Harlington Wood Jr.
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
In office
May 7, 1976 – January 15, 1992
Appointed by Gerald Ford
Preceded by John Paul Stevens
Succeeded by Ilana Rovner
Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
In office
July 18, 1973 – May 28, 1976
Appointed by Richard Nixon
Preceded by Omer Poos
Succeeded by James Waldo Ackerman
Personal details
Born April 17, 1920
Springfield, Illinois, U.S.
Died December 29, 2008(2008-12-29) (aged 88)
Petersburg, Illinois, U.S.
Nationality American
Spouse(s) Cathryn
Children Alexa (daughter), 2 grandchildren
Residence Springfield, IL
Alma mater University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois College of Law
Occupation Attorney, jurist
Profession jurist
Website www.harlingtonwoodjr.com

Harlington Wood, Jr. (April 17, 1920 – December 29, 2008) was an American lawyer, jurist, political figure and an amateur actor. He served as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 1976 until his death in 2008. He was considered one of the country's leading legal historians on the life and legacy of former lawyer and U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, but is perhaps best known for his involvement as an Assistant Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice in two separate Native American armed protests: the first being the occupation at Alcatraz Island, in San Francisco Bay, from 1969 through the summer of 1971, and the second being the Wounded Knee incident in 1973 at Wounded Knee, South Dakota. His accomplishments and impact as both jurist and statesman included participation in many recent events around the world, which he circled three times, including Russia, Outer Mongolia, Europe, Cambodia, Greenland, China, Japan and South America.

Early life

Wood was the son of Harlington Wood, Sr. a lawyer who also served as a Sangamon County, Illinois judge for sixteen years.[1]

Upon receiving his undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois, Wood served in the U.S Army during World War II, and was present at the signing of the surrender of General Tomoyuki Yamashita and Vice Admiral Denhici Okochi, Commander of the Japanese Navy in the Philippines. It is where they gave up the entire Imperial Japanese Armed Forces to American authorities at the High Commissioner's Residence in Camp John Hay in Baguio, Philippines on September 3, 1945, marking the end of World War II. Upon returning from the Pacific, Wood entered law school at the University of Illinois College of Law at Champaign, Illinois, graduating in 1948. After passing the Bar, he went into private practice in Springfield, Illinois, with his father.[2]

Legal career

Private practice

As noted before, Wood went into private practice in Springfield with his father for ten years. At the conclusion of his appointment to the position of United States Attorney, he returned to private practice in 1961.

Justice Department

In 1958 Wood was appointed United States Attorney for the southern district of Illinois by President Eisenhower. In 1969 he was named Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys in the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. In 1972 he was appointed Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice by President Nixon.

During his time in the Department of Justice he was given many special assignments specifically dealing with issues of peacekeeping in locations around the United States: Wounded Knee; Culebra; Alcatraz; anti-war demonstrations in Washington, D.C.; and national political nominating conventions in Miami, Florida.

Wounded Knee

Main article: Wounded Knee incident

On Feb. 27, almost two hundred armed Oglala Sioux from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation with members of an activist group, the American Indian Movement (AIM), took over the reservation town of Wounded Knee, the site of a massacre in 1890 of three hundred Sioux by American soldiers. Their stated intent was to focus attention to what they considered government mistreatment of Indians, corruption within the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the tribal government's complicity in discrimination. United States marshals and American troops subsequently surrounded the town, and for ten weeks the two sides traded intermittent gunfire, and two Sioux were killed.

On March 13, Wood — then assistant attorney general for the Civil Division of the US Justice Department — became the first government official who was allowed to enter Wounded Knee, under armed escort of residents of the reservation. He met with AIM leaders for two hours and, while he shortly thereafter became ill and did not conclude the negotiation, he is credited as the "icebreaker"[1][3] between the government and AIM. The stand-off ended in an agreement on May 6 to end the occupation without further bloodshed.

Jurist

Wood was appointed Judge of the United States district court, Southern District of Illinois, by President Nixon in 1973. He served in that position until President Ford appointed him Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in 1976, to replace departing John Paul Stevens, who was appointed to the U.S Supreme Court.[2] He has served on U. S. Judicial Conference Committees dealing with Bankruptcy Legislation, Court Administration, Automation, and Long Range Planning for the Federal Judiciary. He has received U.S. State Department and U.S. Information Agency assignments to Mexico, Russia, and Romania. Judge Wood has been an adjunct professor at University of Illinois College of Law and a distinguished visiting professor at St. Louis University School of Law.

Legal Decisions

In the 1977 appellate case of Stump v. Sparkman, Judge Luther Swygert, writing for a panel including Judge Wood as well as Judge William G. East and himself, found that judicial immunity is available only when a judge has jurisdiction over the subject-matter of a case and that it is not available when he acts in "clear absence of all jurisdiction." Although Indiana statute law permitted the sterilization of institutionalized persons under certain circumstances, it provided for the right to notice, the opportunity to defend and the right to appeal. The Court of Appeals found no basis in statutory or common law for a court to order the sterilization of a minor child simply upon a parent's petition. It also held that Judge Stump's action could not be justified as a valid exercise of the power of courts to fashion new common law. In 1978, the United States Supreme Court reversed the Seventh Circuit's decision.

Death

Wood retired from the bench in 2003, and lived in a convalescent facility until his death in 2008.[4]

Personal life

"Woody" to his friends, Wood was often referred to as "Lincolnesque" in appearance and demeanor. In 1952, he was chosen to portray Abraham Lincoln in a professional theatrical production of Kermit Hunter's Forever This Land in nearby New Salem, despite being an untrained amateur. More surprisingly, the production was attended by esteemed politicians of the day, such as Illinois Senator Scott W. Lucas, Vice President Alben W. Barkley, Wood (in Lincoln theatrical makeup) and Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson. The play was reviewed by esteemed film critic Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times, who wrote favorably of both it and its star.

“ “The part of Lincoln is played modestly and honestly by Harlington Wood Jr., a tall, loose-jointed young lawyer in Springfield...(who) seems to be using his voice unnaturally, striving after an effect that he does not entirely achieve. But according to historians in the neighborhood, his manner, his height, his weight and his appearance are remarkably authentic for the part; and his performance solves happily the greatest problem in a Lincoln play.”[5] ”

Legacy

Fellow appellate judge William J. Bauer notes that Wood "was simply a very good judge; he didn't lean to one side or the other" He further reflected that "every case he wrote, he wrote very well."[2]

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) recalled:

“ My first solo jury trial in the United States District Court in Springfield, Illinois was before Judge Harlington Wood, Jr. No nervous young attorney could have drawn a better venue. He was fair and patient and softened the embarrassment of my rookie mistakes in his courtroom. Riding An Unmarked Trail with Judge Wood will take you from the ROTC horse cavalry at the University of Illinois to tense negotiations at Wounded Knee. From a law practice in Springfield, his life story takes us on far-flung adventures and reaches the highest levels of the Department of Justice in Washington. Long and lean with a sparkle in his eye and a wry grin, Harlington Wood has left his mark not just on this attorney, but on our nation. Abe Lincoln is his hero and Wood played him convincingly in local theatre. But his connection with that great Prairie lawyer is more than just a dramatic pose. Harlington Wood's public life brought that great Lincoln tradition to his courtrooms and to all who were fortunate to share his journey. ”

As well, Circuit Judge and legal author Richard A. Posner notes in the foreword for Wood's posthumously-published book, An Unmarked Trail:

“ Harlington and I have been colleagues on the Seventh Circuit for many years, but until I read his fascinating memoir I had only a dim idea of his extraordinary life, including distinguished service in World War II and his decisive contribution on behalf of the Justice Department in resolving the Wounded Knee crisis in 1973. Nor had I realized what an extraordinary world traveler Harlington was — how intrepid, resilient and adventurous. His modesty is excessive, but cannot quite conceal his sterling character and a life of great public service seasoned with excitement. ”

Alison Davis Wood (no relation), a producer at WILL-TV (PBS), noted that Wood demonstrated "how great men can live among us in quiet unassuming ways. She remarks that his life was a "true reflection of the American Dream — a Midwestern boy's own desire for adventure takes him around the world and back".

Wood traveled extensively, including three trips around the world, five trips to the former Soviet Union and one trip to Russia. During some of those travels, he worked with foreign judges in former Iron Curtain countries, helping them establish democratic legal systems.[1]

He was a former president of the Abraham Lincoln Association and former chairman of the Lincoln Legal Papers research project.[1]

Judge Wood's papers are held by the Illinois History and Lincoln Collections at the University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign.

Articles and briefs authored

Further reading

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Petersburg judge to receive honor for legal career". Showcase.netins.net. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
  2. 1 2 3 "Harlington Wood Jr., 1920-2008: Federal appellate judge in Chicago". chicagotribune.com. 2009-01-02. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
  3. ↑ Weber, Bruce (2009-01-18). "Harlington Wood Jr., 88, Siege Negotiator, Is Dead - Obituary (Obit)". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
  4. ↑ "Harlington Wood photos displayed". Isba.org. Archived from the original on 2008-09-08. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
  5. ↑ "The Abraham Lincoln Observer » Blog Archive » More than a Lincoln buff". Blogs.sj-r.com. 2009-01-05. Retrieved 2009-01-24.

External links

Legal offices
Preceded by
Omer Poos		 Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
1973–1976 		Succeeded by
James Waldo Ackerman
Preceded by
John Paul Stevens		 Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
1976–1992 		Succeeded by
Ilana Rovner
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