[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13708]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       JUSTICE REVIUS O. ORTIQUE

  (Mr. JEFFERSON asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. JEFFERSON. Mr. Speaker, the death of Justice Revius O. Ortique 
this past Sunday marked the passing of a true public servant and a 
selfless leader. A man of historic firsts, most notably the first 
African American member of the Civil District Court of Louisiana and 
the first African American member of Louisiana's Supreme Court, he 
blazed a trail for others to follow. He was an outstanding lawyer, 
winning landmark civil rights cases, and serving as president of the 
National Bar Association. He served our community as a leader of our 
Urban League and as chair of the New Orleans Aviation Board. He served 
our Nation, as an army officer and as an appointee to significant 
Federal posts by five different Presidents.
  Justice Ortique was a man of community, faith, and family. He was a 
man who loved justice, and he pursued it for himself and for others his 
entire life. Our Nation is better for his service, his leadership, and 
his commitment to his country. We pray God's comfort for his wife of 
over 60 years, Miriam, his daughter, Rhesa, and her husband, Alden, and 
his grandchildren Chip, Heidi, and Todd.

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