congressional_record: CREC-2006-12-08-pt1-PgE2139-5
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| granule_id | date | congress | session | volume | issue | title | chamber | granule_class | sub_granule_class | page_start | page_end | speakers | bills | citation | full_text |
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| CREC-2006-12-08-pt1-PgE2139-5 | 2006-12-08 | 109 | 2 | HONORING FEDERAL JUDGE PAUL BROWN | HOUSE | EXTENSIONS | HONORING | E2139 | E2140 | [{"name": "Ralph M. Hall", "role": "speaking"}] | 152 Cong. Rec. E2139 | Congressional Record, Volume 152 Issue 135 (Friday, December 8, 2006) [Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 135 (Friday, December 8, 2006)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Pages E2139-E2140] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] HONORING FEDERAL JUDGE PAUL BROWN ______ HON. RALPH M. HALL of texas in the house of representatives Wednesday, December 6, 2006 Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to pay tribute to one of the outstanding Federal judges in our Nation, U.S. District Judge Paul Brown, who is retiring after 21 years of distinguished service on the bench in the Eastern District of Texas. Judge Brown has been my good friend for many years, and he is a respected and beloved Judge and member of the community in Sherman, Texas. Judge Brown represents the finest qualities of jurisprudence. Hanging on his wall in the Sherman Federal Courthouse are Socrates' four qualities for a good judge--to hear courteously, to answer wisely, to consider soberly, and to decide impartially. Judge Brown embodied all of these qualities, and he dispensed justice accordingly. He was highly regarded, well-respected, and was a role model for many. Paul Brown was the youngest of a family of six raised on a farm near Pottsboro, TX. He graduated from Denison High School and although underage, he got his parents' consent to join the U.S. Navy when World War II broke out. He served as a minesweeper in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters and as a part of the occupation forces in Japan. He was discharged as an Electrician's Mate 2nd Class in June, 1946. He returned to his studies and received a law degree in 1950 from The University of Texas before being recalled to active duty in the Korean War. He saw combat aboard a minesweeper which was sunk by mines, and he received an honorable discharge in December of 1951. Judge began his practice of law following the war and following President Dwight Eisenhower's election, he went to work as an assistant U.S. Attorney in Texarkana under U.S. Attorney William Steger, who would become his mentor, good friend, and fellow colleague [[Page E2140]] on the bench in the Eastern District until Judge Steger's passing this year. He served as Assistant U.S. Attorney from 1953 to 1959, then followed in Judge Steger's footsteps as U.S. District Attorney from 1959 to 1961. While in Texarkana, Judge Brown met and married Frances Morehead, and the two returned home to Sherman, where Judge Brown practiced law for a number of years. In 1985 Senator Phil Graham recommended him to President Ronald Reagan for a new judge's position created for the Eastern District of Texas, and Judge Brown was confirmed that year. He held court in Beaumont, Paris, Sherman, and Texarkana, and as the caseload in Sherman grew, he eventually presided over the Sherman courthouse exclusively. Premiere cases over the years included intellectual property, patent cases, and criminal cases precipitated by the bank and savings and loan failures of the 1980s and 1990s. In recent years he noted the increase in drug cases and expressed his regret that, in spite of all the efforts that have been made to prosecute drug dealers, the nation is not making much progress in curtailing the use of drugs. No matter what type of cases came before him, Judge Brown always enjoyed the work and ran an efficient and orderly courtroom. His personal work ethic and judicial integrity have been remarkable, and his reputation for punctuality has been legendary. At his retirement reception, hundreds of local attorneys, area judges and friends and family paid tribute to Judge Brown. The Eastern District Chief Judge, Thad Heartfield, speaking for the fifteen judges on their court, has recommended that Congress name the U.S. District Courthouse in Sherman the ``Paul Brown U.S. Courthouse.'' Judge Heartfield noted that Judge Brown has demonstrated the finest qualities of a U.S. district judge: knowledge of the law, courtesy, patience, wisdom and compassion. It will be my pleasure to introduce legislation to that end. As we near adjournment of the 109th Congress, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the life of a great American, outstanding public servant, and respected jurist, the Honorable Paul Brown, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Texas. ____________________ |