[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 171 (Wednesday, November 18, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2797-E2798]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE LIFE AND MEMORY OF BILL BOYD

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. SAM JOHNSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 18, 2009

  Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I invite my colleagues to 
join me in honoring the life and memory of my friend, Bill Boyd. 
Enclosed they may read a profile piece in the Dallas Morning News 
featuring Bill's distinguished life of service, love of Texas, and 
devotion to family.

             [From the Dallas Morning News, Aug. 31, 2009]

William M. ``Bill'' Boyd: Storied Dallas Attorney Defended Tex Watson, 
                              Police Chief

                           (By Rudolph Bush)

       William M. ``Bill'' Boyd, 71, a storied attorney who gave 
     up a career in politics to build up a successful McKinney law 
     firm founded by his father, died Saturday of heart failure. 
     Mr. Boyd of Dallas was well known in Texas' political and 
     legal circles for his sharp mind, constant optimism and 
     kindness. His career spanned five decades and countless 
     cases.
       A 1963 graduate of Southern Methodist University Law 
     School, he was elected Collin County district attorney in 
     1964, before he had even passed the bar. As the son of 
     attorney Roland Boyd--a close adviser to House Speaker Sam 
     Rayburn and a friend of President Lyndon Johnson--Mr. Boyd 
     might easily have built his early success into a lifelong 
     political vocation, friends said.
       ``He would have done well in politics, but he loved the 
     law. He loved legal practice,'' said Kent Hance, chancellor 
     of Texas Tech University and a former U.S. representative. 
     Mr. Boyd served four years as district attorney before 
     returning to Boyd Veigel, where he practiced until his death.
       From the earliest years of his career, Mr. Boyd was 
     involved in high-profile cases. When Manson family member 
     Charles ``Tex'' Watson was arrested in connection with the 
     murders of actress Sharon Tate and others, Mr. Boyd fought 
     his extradition from Texas to California all the way to the 
     U.S. Supreme Court.
       ``He did everything he could to keep him over here because 
     Watson had already been convicted in the papers over there. 
     He didn't feel like Watson could get a fair trial,'' said 
     John Stooksberry, a longtime partner of Mr. Boyd.
       Though ultimately unsuccessful at blocking Watson's 
     extradition, Mr. Boyd did see

[[Page E2798]]

     many legal victories. In 1991, he successfully defended 
     former Dallas Police Chief Mack Vines against a perjury 
     charge, calling a slew of witnesses, including former U.S. 
     Attorney General Edwin Meese, to the stand.
       At the time of his death, Mr. Boyd was leading a long-
     standing lawsuit pitting Dallas police officers and 
     firefighters against the city in a dispute over back pay. 
     Elements of that case, which could involve hundreds of 
     millions of dollars in potential damages, are now before the 
     state Supreme Court.
       Mr. Boyd's wife, Barbara White Boyd, recalled her husband's 
     passion for the law and for politics as grounded in a keen 
     intelligence and attention to detail.
       ``He always managed to put things in such an eloquent and 
     kind way, even when he was critical. He was the most open and 
     honest person,'' she said.
       He was loyal, too. In conservative Collin County, he never 
     wavered from his commitment to Democratic politics.
       ``After I changed parties in the '80s, he told me, `I still 
     love you even though you're a Republican.' '' Mr. Hance said. 
     ``He had friends on both sides, and he never took his 
     politics so personal it affected his friendship with 
     anyone.''
       Mr. Boyd's mark on law in Collin County is clear from a 
     visit to the county courthouse, where he has placed two works 
     of art, a sculpture of Alamo hero William Barret Travis and a 
     portrait print of decorated World War II soldier Audie 
     Murphy.
       Mr. Boyd had said the sculpture of Travis represented what 
     he believed in when it came to the law.
       ``It stands for courage, and that's what you need in a 
     lawyer. You need someone that will stand up against the 
     state, against powerful forces that you may be, as an 
     individual, up against,'' he said.
       In addition to his wife, Mr. Boyd's survivors include his 
     sons, William Bradley Boyd of New Orleans and Blake Edward 
     Boyd of Los Angeles; his sister, Betty Skelton of Houston; 
     and three grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his 
     first wife, Betty Boyd.
       His body will lie in repose from 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday at 
     Turrentine Jackson Morrow Funeral Home, 2525 N. Central 
     Expressway in Allen. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. 
     Wednesday at the funeral home.
       Services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at First 
     Baptist Church of McKinney, 1615 W. Louisiana St. Burial at 
     Lake View Cemetery in Lavon will follow.

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