David Moffatt Furches (April 2, 1832 – June 7, 1908) was an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and jurist who served as an associate justice (1895–1901) and chief justice (1901–1903) of the

North Carolina Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina is the state of North Carolina's highest appellate court. Until the creation of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in the 1960s, it was the state's only appellate court. The Supreme Court consists ...

Biography

David M. Furches was born in

Davie County, North Carolina Davie County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,712. Its county seat is Mocksville. Davie County is included in the Winston-Salem, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a ...

in 1832. He

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

under Chief Justice Richmond M. Pearson at the

Richmond Hill Law School Richmond Hill Law School is a historic home and law school building located near Richmond Hill, Yadkin County, North Carolina. It was built in 1848, and is a two-story, three bay, "T"-plan, brick building. It has a low hipped roof and deep ove ...

and served in the state constitutional convention in 1865, representing Davie County. Furches practiced law in Davie and later Iredell County, North Carolina and became a prominent member of the

North Carolina Republican Party The North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in North Carolina. Michael Whatley has been the chair since 2019. History Nineteenth century Although Republicans first nominated a candidate for President o ...

. In 1875, he was appointed a state superior court judge, a position he held until 1879. He lost two races for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, one in 1872 and the other in 1880, and was his party's nominee for

Governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The governor directs the executive branch of the government and is the commander in chief of the military forces of the state. The current governor, ...

in 1892, losing to

Elias Carr Elias Carr (February 25, 1839 – July 22, 1900) was an American planter, lawyer, and politician who served as the 48th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1893 to 1897. A building on the campus of the University of North Carolina a ...

. In 1894, Furches was elected to the state Supreme Court. In 1900 the justices, by a vote of four to one, declared unconstitutional important legislation enacted by the

North Carolina General Assembly of 1899-1900 North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

, which was controlled by Democrats. When Chief Justice

William T. Faircloth William Turner Faircloth (1829–1900) was the chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court from 1895 until his death on December 29, 1900. According to his ''New York Times'' obituary, Faircloth was, at the time of his death, one of the ...

died in December 1900, fellow Republican Gov.

Daniel L. Russell Daniel Lindsay Russell Jr. (August 7, 1845May 14, 1908) was the 49th Governor of North Carolina, serving from 1897 to 1901. An attorney, judge, and politician, he had also been elected as state representative and to the United States Congress, ...

appointed Furches to the post. He married twice, to Eliza Bingham and Lula Corpening. He died at his home in Statesville on June 7, 1908.

Impeachment

On February 18, 1901, the

North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the House, who holds powers similar to those of the President pro-tem in the North Ca ...

(again controlled by Democrats)

impeached Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

Furches and Associate Justice

Robert M. Douglas Robert Martin Douglas (January 28, 1849 – February 8, 1917) was a North Carolina Supreme Court justice and political figure. At the beginning of his career, the young attorney served as private secretary to the Republican governor of North Car ...

(who was also a Republican). The charges involved an obscure case in which the justices ordered the

North Carolina State Treasurer The North Carolina State Treasurer is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina responsible for overseeing the financial operations of state government. The current state treasurer is Dale Folwell. The office of state treasur ...

to pay the salary of the state Shell Fish Inspector (a Republican), against the wishes of the General Assembly. A two-thirds majority was required to remove the justices, and none of the five articles of impeachment attracted even a majority of the North Carolina Senate in his impeachment trial. Yes-no votes on the five articles were 23-27, 24-26, 24-26, 25-25 and 16-34. Among the lawyers defending Furches in the impeachment proceedings was former Gov.

Thomas J. Jarvis Thomas Jordan Jarvis (January 18, 1836June 17, 1915) was the 44th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1879 to 1885. Jarvis later served as a U.S. Senator from 1894 to 1895, and helped establish East Carolina Teachers Training Scho ...

, a Democrat. Furches lost in his bid for election as chief justice in 1902. As of 1906, he was a member of the state Republican Party's executive committee.Republican Hand-Book, 1906
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References

John H. Wheeler John Hill Wheeler (1806–1882) was an American attorney, politician, historian, planter and slaveowner. He served as North Carolina State Treasurer (1843–1845), and as United States Minister to Nicaragua (1855–1856). Wheeler gained national ...

North Carolina Manual of 1913

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Furches, David 1832 births 1908 deaths North Carolina Republicans North Carolina lawyers Chief Justices of the North Carolina Supreme Court U.S. state supreme court judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law 19th-century American judges United States judges impeached by state or territorial governments