[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 102 (Wednesday, July 21, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H6502-H6503]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   JUDGE WILLIAM B. BRYANT ANNEX TO THE E. BARRETT PRETTYMAN FEDERAL 
                 BUILDING AND UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE

  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4294) to designate the annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman 
Federal Building and United States Courthouse located at 333 
Constitution Ave. Northwest in Washington, District of Columbia, as the 
``Judge William B. Bryant Annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal 
Building and United States Courthouse,'' as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4294

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.

       The annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Building and 
     United States Courthouse located at 333 Constitution Avenue 
     Northwest in the District of Columbia shall be known and 
     designated as the ``William B. Bryant Annex''.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

       Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, 
     or other record of the United States to the annex referred to 
     in section 1 shall be deemed to be a reference to the 
     ``William B. Bryant Annex''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) and the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia 
(Ms. Norton) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).
  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4294, introduced by the gentlewoman from the 
District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) designates the annex to the E. 
Barrett Prettyman Federal Building and United States Courthouse as the 
William B. Bryant Annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Building 
and United States Courthouse.
  Judge Bryant was born in Alabama, but raised in Washington, D.C. He 
attended public schools here in the District, and graduated from Dunbar 
High School. He received both his bachelor and law degrees from Howard 
University.
  In 1943, like many of his generation, he entered the United States 
Army receiving a commission as a first lieutenant. He was honorably 
discharged in 1947, having attained the rank of lieutenant colonel.
  After 18 years in private practice, marked by a brief period with the 
Department of Justice, William Bryant was appointed to the United 
States District Court for the District of Columbia in 1965.
  In 1977, Judge Bryant became the first African American to serve as 
the Chief Judge for the D.C. District Court. Judge Bryant took senior 
status in 1982 although he continued to hear cases long after many 
others would have retired.
  I would like to commend the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia 
(Ms. Norton) for being persistent in bringing this bill to the floor to 
honor a distinguished jurist.
  This is a fitting tribute to a respected judge. I urge my colleagues 
to support the bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1815

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I

[[Page H6503]]

should begin by thanking the leadership of the House and my own 
leadership for the way they have accommodated me in bringing this bill 
forward quickly. I especially thank the chairman of our subcommittee, 
the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette), for so readily agreeing to 
manage this bill and bring it forward, because it comes forward under 
rather special and unusual circumstances.
  The judge for whom this courthouse is to be named would by any 
standard be regarded as a historic figure in the Federal judiciary and 
in the judiciary of this city. H.R. 4294, a bill to name the annex of 
the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Building, which houses the United 
States District Court for the District of Columbia for William B. 
Bryant, is what is before us. Judge Bryant is a former chief judge of 
the District Court, the first African American to hold the post, a 
longtime D.C. resident and graduate of the D.C. public schools with a 
distinguished legal career, who currently serves as a senior judge. The 
annex is under construction at Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues 
Northwest and when completed early next year will provide much-needed 
state-of-the-art courtrooms and judges' chambers.
  H.R. 4294 has an unusual origin. The chief judge of the United States 
District Court for the District of Columbia, for himself and the 
members of the trial court, visited my office to request that the annex 
under construction for the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Building be 
named for senior U.S. District Court judge William B. Bryant. Judge 
Bryant was unaware of the desires and actions of his colleagues who 
unanimously agreed to request that the annex be named for the judge.
  It is rare that Congress names a courthouse or an annex for a judge 
who has served in that court and even more rare for a judge who is 
still sitting. Judge Bryant's colleagues, who know his work and his 
temperament best, have found a particularly appropriate way for our 
city and our country to celebrate the life and accomplishments of a 
great judge who has had an historic impact on the law and on his court. 
I know Judge Bryant personally. I know his reputation in this city and 
in the law. And I know that the request to name the annex for Judge 
Bryant reflects deep respect for his unusually distinguished life at 
the bar.
  Judge Bryant began his career in private practice in the segregated 
Washington of the 1940s and 1950s when African American lawyers were 
barred from membership in the District of Columbia Bar Association and 
from using the bar law library. He established his legal reputation as 
a partner in the legendary African American law firm of Houston, Bryant 
& Gardner and taught at Howard University law school.
  His reputation as an extraordinary trial lawyer led to his 
appointment as the first African American assistant U.S. Attorney for 
the District of Columbia. He rose to become the first African American 
to serve as chief judge of the U.S. District Court whose members now 
ask that the annex be named for Judge Bryant.
  For his representation of criminal defendants in private practice, 
Judge Bryant was admired as one of the city's best and most respected 
litigators. Among his many notable cases is the landmark Mallory v. 
United States where the Supreme Court ruled that an arrested person 
must be promptly brought before a judicial officer.
  Judge Bryant graduated from the D.C. public schools, Howard 
University, and the Howard University School of Law where he was first 
in his class. After graduation, Judge Bryant served as chief research 
assistant to Dr. Ralph Bunche when Dr. Bunche worked with Gunnar 
Myrdal, the famous Swedish economist, in his studies of American racial 
issues. Judge Bryant served in the United States Army during World War 
II and was honorably discharged as a lieutenant colonel in 1947.
  Judge Bryant, who is 92, took senior status in 1982. He raised a 
family, but as Chief Judge Thomas Hogan wrote, ``lost his beloved wife, 
Astaire, and now lives alone, with this court and the law as the center 
of his life.''
  I am grateful to our judges of the United States District Court here 
for the thoughtful proposal that the annex to their court be named for 
Judge William B. Bryant. The residents of this city that Judge Bryant 
has served so well, the judges of the United States District Court for 
the District of Columbia, and the members of the bar here would be 
particularly pleased. I am delighted that Senator Patrick Leahy, 
ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has sponsored the 
bill in the Senate; and I urge quick approval to give honor to one of 
the great judges of our court.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4294, a 
bill to designate the annex to the Prettyman Courthouse in Washington, 
D.C., as the Judge William B. Bryant Annex. I thank Chairmen Young and 
LaTourette for their graciousness and support in moving this bill to 
the Floor in such an expeditious manner.
  Judge Bryant, who is 92 years old, is an icon in District legal 
circles. He practiced law in the 1940s and 1950s when the city was 
segregated. He could not join the D.C. Bar Association or use its 
facilities. Yet, he has achieved great stature as a trial lawyer and 
enjoys an enviable reputation.
  Judge Bryant is a lifelong D.C. resident who attended public schools 
and Howard Law School, where he graduated first in his class. He began 
his legal career in private practice in the District with the legendary 
African American law firm of Houston, Bryant, and Gardner. In 1965, he 
was nominated by President Johnson to the Federal bench and was 
confirmed by the U.S. Senate in August of that year. Judge Bryant is 
the first African American to hold the post of Chief Judge.
  During his long, productive legal career Judge Bryant also served as 
the first African American Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District, 
and has taught at Howard Law School. He is also a World War II veteran, 
serving in the Army from 1943 until 1947.
  The judges of the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia 
unanimously agreed to name the annex in honor of Judge Bryant and 
approached Congresswoman Norton for her help.
  Judge Bryant's civil career is extraordinary. He is a role model, a 
mentor, a loyal friend and advisor. It is fitting and just that Judge 
William Bryant be honored with this designation.
  I support H.R. 4294 and urge its passage.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Ose). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4294, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to 
designate the annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Building and 
United States Courthouse located at 333 Constitution Avenue Northwest 
in the District of Columbia as the `William B. Bryant Annex' ''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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