Hugh Bownes
Hughes Henry Bownes (1920-2003) was a federal judge for the First Circuit and for the District of New Hampshire. Bownes joined the First Circuit in 1977 after an appointment from Jimmy Carter. He joined the District of New Hampshire in 1968 after an appointment from Lyndon Johnson. At the time of this appointment, Bownes served as an Associate justice of New Hampshire Superior Court. He assumed senior status on January 1, 1990 and served until his death on November 5, 2003.[1][2]
Early life and education
- Columbia University, B.A., 1941
- Columbia Law School, LL.B., 1948[1]
Military service
Bownes served in the United States Marine Corps from 1941-1946. According to his biography, "As a Marine during World War II, he fought at Guadalcanal and Bougainville. In the Solomon Islands he won the Silver Star for leading a reconnaissance team. During the invasion of Guam, he was struck by a mortar round, severely damaging his leg."[2]
Professional career
- Private practice, Laconia, New Hampshire, 1948-1967
- Member, Laconia City Council, New Hampshire, 1953-1957
- Mayor, City of Laconia, New Hampshire, 1963-1965
- Associate justice, New Hampshire Superior Court, 1966-1968[1]
Judicial nominations and appointments
First Circuit
He was nominated to the First Circuit by Jimmy Carter on September 19, 1977, to fill the seat vacated by Edward McEntee. He was subsequently confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 7, 1977. He received his commission on October 11, 1977. He assumed senior status on November 5, 1993 and served until his death on November 5, 2003. His vacancy was filled by David Souter.[1]
District of New Hampshire
Bownes was nominated to the District of New Hampshire by Lyndon Johnson on July 17, 1968, to fill the seat vacated by Aloysius Connor. He was subsequently confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 25, 1968. He received his commission on October 31, 1977. Bownes was succeeded in this position by Shane Devine.[1]
Awards and assocations
Awards
- John Jay Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement from Columbia University in 1987[2]
Associations
- Delegate, 1956 Democratic National Convention
- Member, Democratic National Committee[2]
Approach to the law
According to his biography, Judge Hugh Bownes was an advocate for civil rights and liberties and freedom of expression. His biography states:
"Judge Bownes was a champion of war protesters, welfare recipients, feminists, homosexuals and prisoners. Since becoming a judge in 1966, he issued hundreds of rulings, upholding freedom of expression and basic human rights.
Judge Bownes began his civil rights crusade early when, as a young lawyer, he represented a Conway man accused of hiding Communists. He received national attention when, as a district court judge, he issued a ruling describing the harsh and inhumane conditions of the NH Prison. As a result, the State overhauled its prison system. In some of his more noteworthy decisions during his decade on the federal bench in Concord, he found that NE Telephone & Telegraph discriminated against female employees, that gay students at UNH had the right to hold a dance, that a farm boy from Pittsfield had the right to wear blue jeans to school, that the State's flag desecration law was too broad and that George Maynard had the right to cover "Live Free or Die" on his license plate.
From the federal appeals court, he continued to champion equal rights. In 1994 he wrote an opinion that strengthened Title IX, the law that mandates equal funding for men's and women's sports. Columbia University honored Judge Bownes in 1987 with the John Jay Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement, recognizing him "[a]s one who has never let fear of controversy deter him from vigorously upholding the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights."[2]
See also
- United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire
- United States Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit
External links
- District of New Hampshire
- Judges of the New Hampshire District
- Biography at the Federal Judicial Center.
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Aloysius Joseph Connor |
District of New Hampshire 1968–1977 Seat #1 |
Succeeded by: Shane Devine |
| Preceded by: Edward McEntee |
First Circuit 1977–1990 Seat #2 |
Succeeded by: David Souter
|
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Active judges |
Chief Judge: David Barron • Gustavo Gelpí • William Kayatta • Lara Montecalvo • Julie Rikelman • Seth Aframe | ||
| Senior judges |
Bruce Marshall Selya • Levin Hicks Campbell • Jeffrey R. Howard • Kermit Lipez • Sandra Lea Lynch • O. Rogeriee Thompson • | ||
| Former judges | Stephen Breyer • David Souter • Norman Stahl • Michael Boudin • Juan Torruella • Hugh Bownes • Benjamin Bourne • John A. Lowell • Jeremiah Smith • John Lowell (federal judge, 1865-1884) • George Foster Shepley • LeBaron Bradford Colt • William LeBaron Putnam • Francis Cabot Lowell • Frederic Dodge • James Madison Morton • William Schofield • George Weston Anderson • George Hutchins Bingham • Charles Fletcher Johnson • Scott Wilson (Maine) • John Christopher Mahoney • Calvert Magruder • Bailey Aldrich • John Patrick Hartigan • Frank Coffin • Edward McEntee • Peter Woodbury • | ||
| Former Chief judges |
Stephen Breyer • Levin Hicks Campbell • Jeffrey R. Howard • Michael Boudin • Juan Torruella • Sandra Lea Lynch • Calvert Magruder • Bailey Aldrich • Frank Coffin • Peter Woodbury • | ||
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 |
Anderson • Bratton • Christie • Collins • Cowen • Davis • Ely • Freedman • Gordon • Higginbotham • McNichols • Muecke • Nichols • Port • Rabinovitz • Robinson • Simons • Suttle • Weber • Whelan • Zampano | ||
| 1965 |
Bryant • Celebrezze • Coffin • Coleman • Collinson • Corcoran • Doyle • Eubanks • Fortas • Frankel • Gasch • Gibson • Gordon • Harris • Hemphill • Hill • Hunter • Landis • Langley • Leventhal • Maxwell • McEntee • Mehrtens • Nichol • Reynolds • Russell • Smith • Tamm • Thornberry • Young | ||
| 1966 |
Ainsworth • Atkins • Boyle • Cabot • Cassibry • Copple • Craven • Cummings • Dyer • Fairchild • Feinberg • Ferguson • Fullam • Garrity • Godbold • Goldberg • Goodwin • Gray • Guinn • Harvey • Hauk • Heaney • Heebe • Hickey • Hogan • Kaufman • Kinneary • Krentzman • Lay • Leddy • Lord • Lynch • MacKenzie • Mansfield • McCree • McRae • Mitchell • Motley • Napoli • Nichols • Noland • Peck II • Peckham • Pettine • Pittman • Porter • Real • Roberts • Robinson • Robinson • Rubin • Russell • Scott • Seals • Seitz • Simpson • Singleton • Skelton • Smith • Smith • Taylor • Thomas • von der Heydt • Watson • Winter • Wise | ||
| 1967 |
Arnow • Beckworth • Belloni • Butzner • Cancio • Carter • Clayton • Combs • Comiskey • Curtin • Eaton • Edenfield • Fernandez-Badillo • Gesell • Gordon • Jones • Keith • Kellam • Lambros • Maletz • Marshall • Masterson • Merhige • Morgan • Murray • Neville • Pollack • Pregerson • Theis • Troutman • Van Dusen • Waddy • Weiner • Weinstein • Whipple • Williams | ||
| 1968 |
Aldisert • Baldwin • Bownes • Bright • Green • Gubow • Henderson • Holloway • Hufstedler • Judd • Justice • Keady • Kerner, Jr. • Lasker • Latchum • Lawrence • McMillan • Morgan • Newman • Nixon • Pratt • Re • Rosenstein • Schwartz • Smith • Stahl • Travia • Woodward | ||
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 |
Ballantine • Bownes • Boyle • Bua • Carr • Clark • Cowan • Daly • Filippine • Higginbotham • Hoeveler • Hug • Johnstone • Kane • Keith • Leval • Logan • MacLaughlin • McKay • Melton • Merritt • Murphy • Nickerson • Oberdorfer • Roszkowski • Roy • Rubin • Sifton • Tang • Vance • Veron | ||
| 1978 |
Arnold • Baker • Boyle • Burns • Campos • Claiborne • Collins • Cook • Devine • Diamond • Duplantier • Edenfield • Friedman • Gonzalez • Greene • Jenkins • Lowe • Mazzone • McMillian • O'Brien • Pfaelzer • Phillips • Pollak • Sand • Shapiro • Simmons • Smith • Sweet • Tanner • Wiseman • Ziegler | ||
| 1979 |
Ackerman • Alarcon • Anderson • Arceneaux • Arnold • Aspen • Beatty • Beer • Belew • Bertelsman • Bilby • N. Black • S. Black • Bloch • Bowen • Brett • Brooks • Brown • Buchmeyer • Bunton • Burciaga • Cabranes • Carr • Carrigan • Castagna • Cire • Clark • Cohn • Conaboy • Cordova • Crabb • Cudahy • Davis • DeAnda • Debevoise • Edwards • Eginton • Ellison • Enslen • O. Evans • T. Evans • Farris • Ferguson • Fletcher • Frye • Garcia • Garza • B. Gibson • H. Gibson • Gierbolini-Ortiz • Giles • Gilliam • Green • Hall • Hastings • Hatchett • Hatfield • Hatter • Hawkins • Henderson • Higby • Hillman • Houck • Howard • Hudspeth • Hungate • F. Johnson • S. Johnson • N. Jones • S. Jones • Karlton • Kazen • Kearse • Keeton • Kehoe • Kennedy • Kidd • King • Kravitch • Loughlin • Martin • McCurn • McDonald • McNaught • McNichols • Mikva • Mitchell • Moran • Murnaghan • Murphy • D. Nelson • D.W. Nelson • Newblatt • Newman • Overton • Paine • Panner • J. Parker • R. Parker • Penn • Perez-Gimenez • Perry • Politz • Poole • Porter • Pregerson • Price • Rambo • Ramirez • Reavley • Redden • E. Reed • S. Reed • Reinhardt • Renner • Robinson • Rothstein • Sachs • Saffels • Sanders • Sarokin • Schroeder • Schwartz • Seay • Senter • Seymour • Shannon • Shaw • Shoob • Skopil • Sloviter • Sofaer • Spellman • Sprouse • Staker • Tate • Taylor • Thompson • Tidwell • Unthank • Vietor • Vining • Wald • Ward • Weinshienk • West • Wicker • Williams • Winder • Woods • Wright • Zobel | ||
| 1980 |
Aguilar • Aldrich • Anderson • Boochever • Breyer • Britt • Cahill • Canby • Carroll • Cerezo • Clemon • S. Ervin • R. Erwin • Getzendanner • Gilmore • Ginsburg • Haltom • Hardy • Henderson • Hobbs • Holschuh • Horton • Howard • Johnson • Keep • Kelly • Kenyon • Kocoras • Marquez • Marshall • Michael • Nixon • Norris • Patel • Polozola • Propst • Quackenbush • Ramsey • Rice • Shadur • Spiegel • Tashima • Thompson • Vela • White • Williams | ||
| 1981 | |||
Federal courts:
First Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of New Hampshire • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of New Hampshire
State courts:
New Hampshire Supreme Court • New Hampshire Superior Courts • New Hampshire Circuit Courts • New Hampshire Probate Courts • New Hampshire District Court • New Hampshire Family Division
State resources:
Courts in New Hampshire • New Hampshire judicial elections • Judicial selection in New Hampshire
