[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 130 (Friday, August 1, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


        HONORING THE MEMORY OF THE HONORABLE ARTHUR GAMBLE, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 1, 2008

  Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, the State of Alabama recently lost a man 
who made a profound impact on our State and Nation, and I rise today to 
honor the memory of Judge Arthur ``Bud'' Gamble, Jr.
  History will remember Judge Gamble as the district attorney who 
prosecuted Ku Klux Klansman Collie Leroy Wilkins for the 1965 murder of 
Viola Liuzzo, a civil rights worker from Detroit who was gunned down in 
her car following the Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march. Judge 
Gamble's memorable closing argument to the all-white jury led to a hung 
jury and the eventual federal conviction of the Klansman. Judge 
Gamble's contributions to the Civil Rights movement, his 23 years of 
service as circuit judge for Lowndes, Crenshaw, and Butler counties, 
and his dedicated service in World War II demonstrated he was a true 
American patriot.
  Born on February 9, 1920, in Greenville, Alabama, Judge Gamble joined 
the Navy during World War II and flew patrol planes in the South 
Pacific. After the war, he returned to the University of Alabama and 
earned a Juris Doctor. He began practicing in his hometown and met 
Roberta Anne Peacock, whom he married in 1949. His love of law led him 
to serve in the Alabama Senate during the 1950s. He ran unopposed as 
the chief prosecutor in the circuit and served two terms.
  Miraculously, Judge Gamble survived an assassination attempt in 1975 
when his car was bombed. He retired almost two decades later in 1992, 
with much respect from the citizens of the three counties he had served 
for almost a quarter of a century.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in remembering a 
dedicated judge, community leader, and friend to many, as well as a 
wonderful husband and father. Judge Gamble will be dearly missed by his 
family--his wife, Roberta Gamble and their daughter, Reverend Eugenia 
Gamble--as well as the many countless friends he leaves behind.
  Our thoughts and prayers are with them all during this difficult 
time.

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