William J. Campbell
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Hon. William J. Campbell (March 19, 1905 – October 19, 1988) was the longest serving Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. In 1970 the the Library of the United States Courts of the Seventh Circuit was named "The William J. Campbell Library of the United States Courts."
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[edit] Early life
William Joseph Campbell was born on March 19, 1905 in Chicago, and was a graduate of St. Rita High School. He received an LL.B. degree from Loyola University in 1926 and an LL.M. from the same school in 1928.
[edit] Attorney
Admitted to the Illinois Bar, Campbell practiced law in Chicago from 1927 to 1938 opening the firm of Campbell and Burns. The new firm's first major client was the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. It was at this time that Campbell first got involved in Chicago Democratic politics.
An early supporter of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Campbell formed the Young Democrats for Roosevelt in 1932. For his efforts he was named Illinois administrator for the president's National Youth Administration in 1935 and in 1938 he was designated United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.
As a federal prosecutor, he helped convict Al Capone of tax evasion and challenged the city's political leaders and their system of influence.
[edit] Judge
In 1940 Campbell was named to the federal bench at age thirty-five, the youngest judge ever appointed. Early in his time on the bench he conducted one of the few treason trials ever held in the United States.
When Supreme Court justice Felix Frankfurter died in 1965, many thought Campbell was certain to be appointed to the Court by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Johnson instead chose Abe Fortas, who resigned four years later. When asked about the missed opportunity many years later, Campbell said, "Although I knew Johnson intimately and personally, he was bigoted enough not to want two Catholics on the Supreme Court."
In 1965, Campbell took on Chicago kingpin Sam Giancana. When Giancana was asked to testify before a Chicago Grand Jury, he invoked his fifth amendment right to remain silent. Campbell granted Giancana immunity from prosecution and ordered him to testify. After Giancana refused, he spent the next year in jail on contempt charges.
At the time of his death, he was the longest-tenured federal judge in the United States.
[edit] Award and Honors
- Silver Buffalo Award, 1946
- Loyola University; LL.D. 1955
- Lincoln College; LL.D. 1960
- Duquesne College; Litt.D., 1965
- Barat College; J.C.D. 1966
- Chicagoan of the Year in 1965
- Lincoln Laureate in Law in 1970.
- Edward J. Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award, 1986.
[edit] References
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