[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 98 (Friday, June 28, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7268-S7269]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO ELBERT PARR TUTTLE, SR.

  Mr. NUNN. Mr. President, I rise today in tribute to Judge Elbert P. 
Tuttle, Sr., who died in Atlanta this week at the age of 98. He was an 
extraordinary man who served his Nation in many important capacities, 
but whose service was best characterized by two words: wisdom and 
courage.
  Judge Tuttle was born on July 17, 1897, in Pasadena, CA. He lived in 
California and Washington, DC, before he and his family moved to Hawaii 
in 1906. He graduated from Punahou Academy in 1914, and he then 
attended college at Cornell University. Judge Tuttle received his 
bachelor of arts degree in 1918. Following service in World War I as a 
second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Corps, he returned to Cornell 
and received his law degree in 1923.
  In 1923, Judge Tuttle moved to Atlanta and established, along with 
his brother-in-law, William Sutherland, a tax practice. With but one 
notable exception, he continued this law practice for the next 30 
years.
  The exception, however, is very notable. Judge Tuttle resumed his 
active duty military career during World War II. He served as commander 
of the 304th Field Artillery, 77th Infantry Division and saw action in 
Guam, Okinawa, Leyte, and Ryukyu. He was decorated for bravery under 
fire, and was awarded several medals for his actions, including the 
Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster and the Bronze Star. After the end 
of World War II, Judge Tuttle rose to the rank of brigadier general in 
the U.S. Army Reserve before his retirement. In recognition for his 
long service to our Nation, President Carter awarded Judge Tuttle with 
a Medal of Freedom in 1981.
  During his 30 years of private practice, I believe there are two 
events which demonstrate Judge Tuttle's character and his commitment to 
preserving the rights of all Americans.
  The first event occurred in 1931. One night Judge Tuttle, than a 
major in the Georgia National Guard, received a call from the Georgia 
adjutant general about a ``near riot'' in Elbert County, GA. A mob had 
formed intent on lynching two black men in custody for allegedly raping 
a white woman. Through the use of tear gas, the threat of machine guns, 
and the deployment of Georgia National Guardsmen with bayonets drawn, 
Major Tuttle was able to escort safely the two prisoners away from the 
scene and defuse the situation--all without serious injury to anyone 
involved.
  Judge Tuttle later represented one of the prisoners on appeal in a 
case before the Supreme Court. He successfully argued that the 
defendants were denied due process since they had been convicted by a 
jury unfairly influenced by a mob. Although the defendants later lost 
on retrial, Judge Tuttle's efforts established an important foundation 
for the rights of blacks in our courts.

  The second action concerned a case involving a marine accused of 
counterfeiting. Judge Tuttle filed an appeal that resulted in the 
Supreme Court ruling that an indigent accused of a Federal felony is 
entitled to legal representation. More than a quarter century later, 
Supreme Court rulings affirmed these same rights to defendants in State 
courts.
  Mr. President, by this time, Judge Tuttle's career was a storied one. 
He had helped found a law firm, which is now one of the most 
prestigious in the country. His actions in the courtroom reaffirmed 
precious constitutional notions of due process and equal protection. He 
was a devoted husband, father and community leader. Even to the dismay 
of some of my Democratic forefathers, he found time to breathe new life 
into the two party system in Georgia.
  However, these accomplishments were just the beginning of his career. 
In 1953, Judge Tuttle was selected by President Eisenhower as the 
general counsel for the Department of the Treasury. In 1954, President 
Eisenhower appointed Elbert Tuttle to the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of 
Appeals. The ``historic Fifth'' then had jurisdiction over the Federal 
courts in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and 
the Panama Canal Zone. Judge Tuttle became chief justice of this court 
in 1961, a position he held until 1967 when at age 70 he was required 
to take senior status. Judge Tuttle continued his active work for the 
court almost another 30 years.
  It was on this bench that Judge Tuttle left his mark throughout the 
modern South. During his tenure, the court was itself at the forefront 
of the civil rights movement. Under his leadership as chief justice, 
Judge Tuttle's decisions and opinions had a significant impact on 
ending racial discrimination in voting, jury selection, equal access to 
public facilities and education. He issued decisions that resulted in 
the desegregation of Southern universities and the improvement of

[[Page S7269]]

education at all levels in the South. The ``Tuttle court'' was in many 
ways a beacon to the various State and Federal courts involved in 
decisions effecting civil and individual rights.
  In a commencement address at Emory University, Judge Tuttle noted:

       * * * Like love, talent is only useful in its expenditure, 
     and it is never exhausted. Certain it is that man must eat; 
     so set what you must on your service. But never confuse the 
     performance, which is great, with the compensation, be it 
     money, power, or fame, which is trivial.
       The job is there, you will see it, and your strength is 
     such, as you graduate from Emory, that you need not consider 
     what the task will cost you. It is not enough that you do 
     your duty. The richness of life lies in the performance which 
     is above and beyond the call of duty.

  Mr. President, I, and the many others whose lives he touched, know 
that Judge Tuttle answered and exceeded the frequent calls of duty. He 
led a rich life, and his impact on our lives will continue through the 
wisdom of his judicial decisions and opinions, as well as through the 
lives of his children, Elbert and Jane, his nine grandchildren, and his 
nine great grandchildren.
  His life, as the Atlanta Constitution once noted, was ``a life 
devoted to justice.''

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