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Damon Keith
Damon Jerome Keith was a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. He joined the court in 1977 after being nominated by President Jimmy Carter (D). Keith assumed senior status in 1995. His service ended on April 28, 2019, when he passed away.
Before his appointment to the 6th Circuit, Judge Keith was a district judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.[1]
Education
Keith received his B.A. from West Virginia State College in 1943, his LL.B. in 1943 from Howard University, and his LL.M. from Wayne State University Law School in 1956.[1]
Military service
From 1943 to 1946, Keith served in the United States Army.[1]
Professional career
- 1977-2019: United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
- 1995-2019: Senior judge
- 1977-1995: Judge
- 1967-1977: Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- 1975-1977: Chief judge
- 1950-1967: Private practice, Detroit, Mich.
- 1951-1955: Attorney, Wayne County friend of the court[1]
Judicial nominations and appointments
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
Keith was nominated by President Jimmy Carter (D) on September 28, 1977, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit vacated by Judge Wade Hampton McCree, Jr. Keith was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 20, 1977, and he received his commission on October 21, 1977. Keith assumed senior status on May 1, 1995. He was succeeded in this position by Judge Richard Griffin. Keith's service ended on April 28, 2019, when he passed away.[1]
Eastern District of Michigan
Keith was nominated to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan by President Lyndon Johnson on September 25, 1967, to a seat vacated by Judge Thomas Thornton. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 12, 1967, and he received his commission on October 12, 1967. Keith served as chief judge for the Eastern District of Michigan from 1975 to 1977, before leaving the court on November 22, 1977, due to his appointment to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.[1] Keith was succeeded in this position by Judge Patricia Boyle.
Awards and associations
- 1997: Edward J. Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award, American Judicature Society[2]
Judge Keith was honored by Wayne State University with a building that is named in his honor. The University presented this honor during a ground-breaking ceremony on May 17, 2010 that named the university's civil rights education center in the his name. Many people viewed Judge Keith as a advocate for civil rights throughout his entire professional career as an attorney and judge. Keith said during the ceremony: "I hold the words 'equal justice under the law' closely." The judge also stated: "I hope the words 'equal justice under the law' will guide the work done at the Keith Center."[3]
In July 2015, a documentary entitled Walk with Me: The Trials of Damon J. Keith debuted at the Traverse City Film Festival.
See also
- United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
External links
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Thomas Thornton |
Eastern District of Michigan 1967–1977 Seat #4 |
Succeeded by: Patricia Boyle |
| Preceded by: Wade Hampton McCree, Jr. |
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals 1977–1995 |
Succeeded by: Richard Griffin
|
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Active judges |
• Thomas Ludington • Mark Goldsmith • Stephen Murphy (Michigan) • Shalina Kumar • Linda V. Parker • Laurie Michelson • Terrence Berg • Judith Ellen Levy • Matthew Frederick Leitman • Jonathan Grey • Frances Kay Behm • Susan DeClercq • Brandy McMillion • Robert White (Michigan) | ||
| Senior judges |
Bernard Friedman • Paul Borman • Robert Cleland • Nancy Edmunds • Denise Hood • David M. Lawson • John O'Meara (Michigan) • George Steeh • Gershwin Drain • | ||
| Magistrate judges | David Grand • Patricia T. Morris • Anthony Patti • Elizabeth Stafford • Kimberly Altman • Curtis Ivy Jr. • | ||
| Former Article III judges |
Damon Keith • Victoria Roberts • Marianne Battani • Anna Taylor • Avern Cohn • Sean Cox (Michigan) • Patrick Duggan • John Feikens • Paul Gadola • Arthur Tarnow • Lawrence Zatkoff • Cornelia Kennedy • Ralph Guy • Richard Suhrheinrich • Horace Gilmore • Stewart Newblatt • Ross Wilkins • Barbara Hackett • Russell Harvey (Michigan) • George La Plata • Henry Billings Brown (U.S. Supreme Court) • John Wesley Longyear • Henry Harrison Swan • Alexis Caswell Angell • Arthur Tuttle • Charles Casper Simons • Edward Julien Moinet • Ernest Aloysius O'Brien • Arthur Lederle • Frank Picard • Wade Hampton McCree, Jr. • James Churchill • Mona Majzoub • Patricia Boyle • Robert DeMascio • Ralph Freeman • Lawrence Gubow • Frederick Kaess • Arthur Koscinski • Theodore Levin (Michigan) • Thaddeus Machrowicz • Clifford O'Sullivan • Philip Pratt (Michigan) • Stephen Roth (Michigan) • Talbot Smith • Thomas Thornton • George Woods (federal judge) • Stephanie Dawkins Davis • | ||
| Former Chief judges |
Damon Keith • Bernard Friedman • Anna Taylor • Julian Cook • Sean Cox (Michigan) • John Feikens • Lawrence Zatkoff • Cornelia Kennedy • Arthur Lederle • Frank Picard • James Churchill • Ralph Freeman • Frederick Kaess • Theodore Levin (Michigan) • Philip Pratt (Michigan) • | ||
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 |
Ballantine • Bownes • Boyle • Bua • Carr • Clark • Cowan • Daly • Filippine • Higginbotham • Hoeveler • Hug • Johnstone • Kane • Keith • Leval • Logan • MacLaughlin • McKay • Melton • Merritt • Murphy • Nickerson • Oberdorfer • Roszkowski • Roy • Rubin • Sifton • Tang • Vance • Veron | ||
| 1978 |
Arnold • Baker • Boyle • Burns • Campos • Claiborne • Collins • Cook • Devine • Diamond • Duplantier • Edenfield • Friedman • Gonzalez • Greene • Jenkins • Lowe • Mazzone • McMillian • O'Brien • Pfaelzer • Phillips • Pollak • Sand • Shapiro • Simmons • Smith • Sweet • Tanner • Wiseman • Ziegler | ||
| 1979 |
Ackerman • Alarcon • Anderson • Arceneaux • Arnold • Aspen • Beatty • Beer • Belew • Bertelsman • Bilby • N. Black • S. Black • Bloch • Bowen • Brett • Brooks • Brown • Buchmeyer • Bunton • Burciaga • Cabranes • Carr • Carrigan • Castagna • Cire • Clark • Cohn • Conaboy • Cordova • Crabb • Cudahy • Davis • DeAnda • Debevoise • Edwards • Eginton • Ellison • Enslen • O. Evans • T. Evans • Farris • Ferguson • Fletcher • Frye • Garcia • Garza • B. Gibson • H. Gibson • Gierbolini-Ortiz • Giles • Gilliam • Green • Hall • Hastings • Hatchett • Hatfield • Hatter • Hawkins • Henderson • Higby • Hillman • Houck • Howard • Hudspeth • Hungate • F. Johnson • S. Johnson • N. Jones • S. Jones • Karlton • Kazen • Kearse • Keeton • Kehoe • Kennedy • Kidd • King • Kravitch • Loughlin • Martin • McCurn • McDonald • McNaught • McNichols • Mikva • Mitchell • Moran • Murnaghan • Murphy • D. Nelson • D.W. Nelson • Newblatt • Newman • Overton • Paine • Panner • J. Parker • R. Parker • Penn • Perez-Gimenez • Perry • Politz • Poole • Porter • Pregerson • Price • Rambo • Ramirez • Reavley • Redden • E. Reed • S. Reed • Reinhardt • Renner • Robinson • Rothstein • Sachs • Saffels • Sanders • Sarokin • Schroeder • Schwartz • Seay • Senter • Seymour • Shannon • Shaw • Shoob • Skopil • Sloviter • Sofaer • Spellman • Sprouse • Staker • Tate • Taylor • Thompson • Tidwell • Unthank • Vietor • Vining • Wald • Ward • Weinshienk • West • Wicker • Williams • Winder • Woods • Wright • Zobel | ||
| 1980 |
Aguilar • Aldrich • Anderson • Boochever • Breyer • Britt • Cahill • Canby • Carroll • Cerezo • Clemon • S. Ervin • R. Erwin • Getzendanner • Gilmore • Ginsburg • Haltom • Hardy • Henderson • Hobbs • Holschuh • Horton • Howard • Johnson • Keep • Kelly • Kenyon • Kocoras • Marquez • Marshall • Michael • Nixon • Norris • Patel • Polozola • Propst • Quackenbush • Ramsey • Rice • Shadur • Spiegel • Tashima • Thompson • Vela • White • Williams | ||
| 1981 | |||
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 |
Anderson • Bratton • Christie • Collins • Cowen • Davis • Ely • Freedman • Gordon • Higginbotham • McNichols • Muecke • Nichols • Port • Rabinovitz • Robinson • Simons • Suttle • Weber • Whelan • Zampano | ||
| 1965 |
Bryant • Celebrezze • Coffin • Coleman • Collinson • Corcoran • Doyle • Eubanks • Fortas • Frankel • Gasch • Gibson • Gordon • Harris • Hemphill • Hill • Hunter • Landis • Langley • Leventhal • Maxwell • McEntee • Mehrtens • Nichol • Reynolds • Russell • Smith • Tamm • Thornberry • Young | ||
| 1966 |
Ainsworth • Atkins • Boyle • Cabot • Cassibry • Copple • Craven • Cummings • Dyer • Fairchild • Feinberg • Ferguson • Fullam • Garrity • Godbold • Goldberg • Goodwin • Gray • Guinn • Harvey • Hauk • Heaney • Heebe • Hickey • Hogan • Kaufman • Kinneary • Krentzman • Lay • Leddy • Lord • Lynch • MacKenzie • Mansfield • McCree • McRae • Mitchell • Motley • Napoli • Nichols • Noland • Peck II • Peckham • Pettine • Pittman • Porter • Real • Roberts • Robinson • Robinson • Rubin • Russell • Scott • Seals • Seitz • Simpson • Singleton • Skelton • Smith • Smith • Taylor • Thomas • von der Heydt • Watson • Winter • Wise | ||
| 1967 |
Arnow • Beckworth • Belloni • Butzner • Cancio • Carter • Clayton • Combs • Comiskey • Curtin • Eaton • Edenfield • Fernandez-Badillo • Gesell • Gordon • Jones • Keith • Kellam • Lambros • Maletz • Marshall • Masterson • Merhige • Morgan • Murray • Neville • Pollack • Pregerson • Theis • Troutman • Van Dusen • Waddy • Weiner • Weinstein • Whipple • Williams | ||
| 1968 |
Aldisert • Baldwin • Bownes • Bright • Green • Gubow • Henderson • Holloway • Hufstedler • Judd • Justice • Keady • Kerner, Jr. • Lasker • Latchum • Lawrence • McMillan • Morgan • Newman • Nixon • Pratt • Re • Rosenstein • Schwartz • Smith • Stahl • Travia • Woodward | ||
