Emile Henry Lacombe
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Emile Henry Lacombe (January 29, 1846 – November 28, 1924) was a
United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...
of the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
and of the United States Circuit Courts for the Second Circuit.


Education and career

Born on January 29, 1846, in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
, Lacombe received an
Artium Baccalaureus Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree in 1863 from
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
and a
Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
in 1865 from
Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
. He served in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
from 1862 to 1863 during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
. He entered private practice in New York City from 1865 to 1875. He was assistant corporation counsel for New York City from 1875 to 1884. He was Corporation Counsel for New York City from 1884 to 1887.


Federal judicial service

Lacombe received a
recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...
from President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
on May 26, 1887, to the United States Circuit Courts for the Second Circuit, to a new seat authorized by 24 Stat. 492. He was nominated to the same position by President Cleveland on February 27, 1888. He was confirmed by the
United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...
on February 28, 1888, and received his commission the same day. Lacombe was assigned by
operation of law The phrase "by operation of law" is a legal term that indicates that a right or liability has been created for a party, irrespective of the intent of that party, because it is dictated by existing legal principles. For example, if a person dies wi ...
to additional and concurrent service on the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
on June 16, 1891, to a new seat authorized by 26 Stat. 826 (
Evarts Act The Judiciary Act of 1891 ({{USStat, 26, 826), also known as the Evarts Act after its primary sponsor, Senator William M. Evarts, created the United States courts of appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district ...
). On December 31, 1911, the Circuit Courts were abolished and he thereafter served only on the Court of Appeals. His service terminated on February 15, 1916, due to his retirement.Electrician


Notable cases

On October 4, 1892, Lacombe ruled that Thomas Edison was the true inventor of the first practical Incandescent Light. Edison's patents; US 223,898 and FR 130,910 claims for invention were novel. Western Electrician, Vol. XI, No.16, October 15, 1892, pp 195-6. In 1893, when Ny Look a Chinese
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
veteran was arrested for not registering under the
Geary Act The Geary Act was a United States law that extended the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 by adding onerous new requirements. It was written by California Representative Thomas J. Geary and was passed by Congress on . The law required all Chinese re ...
which required all unregistered Chinese to be arrested and deported, Lacombe ruled in ''In re Ny Look'' that there were no deportation provisions in the law and Look could not be detained indefinitely therefore he should be released. In 1909, Lacombe reluctantly conferred American citizenship on
Bhicaji Balsara Bhicaji Framji Balsara (often misrendered as Bhicaji Franyi Balsara) (May 30, 1872 – 1962) was an Indian immigrant to the United States, notable for being amongst the first Indians to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. Balsara was a Parsi Zoroas ...
, a
Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...
thought to be the first Indian to become a United States citizen. Whilst Lacombe conceded that Balsara "appears to be a gentleman of high character and exceptional intelligence". He was reluctant to confer citizenship as he reasoned that there "was much force in the argument that the Congress which framed the original act for naturalization of aliens ...intended it to include only white persons belonging to the races whose emigrants had contributed to the building up on this continent of the community of people which declared itself a new nation". Lacombe only gave Balsara citizenship on the hope that the
United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...
would indeed challenge his decision and appeal it to create "an authoritative interpretation" of the law. As Lacombe felt if, the definition of 'free white persons' was to be extended ... it...
ould Ould is an English surname and an Arabic name ( ar, ولد). In some Arabic dialects, particularly Hassaniya Arabic, ولد‎ (the patronymic, meaning "son of") is transliterated as Ould. Most Mauritanians have patronymic surnames. Notable p ...
bring in, not only the
Parsee Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...
... which is probably the purest
Aryan Aryan or Arya (, Indo-Iranian *''arya'') is a term originally used as an ethnocultural self-designation by Indo-Iranians in ancient times, in contrast to the nearby outsiders known as 'non-Aryan' (*''an-arya''). In Ancient India, the term ' ...
type, but also
Afghans Afghans ( ps, افغانان, translit=afghanan; Persian/ prs, افغان ها, translit=afghānhā; Persian: افغانستانی, romanized: ''Afghanistani'') or Afghan people are nationals or citizens of Afghanistan, or people with ancestry f ...
,
Hindoos Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
,
Arabs The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...
, and
Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...
". The United States Attorney adhered to Lacombe's wishes and took the matter to the Court of Appeals in 1910. The Court of appeal agreed that Parsees belong to the white race and were "as distinct from Hindus as are the English who dwell in India".


Later career and death

Following his retirement from the federal bench, Lacombe resumed private practice in New York City from 1916 to 1924. He served as a Referee in Chancery in New York City in 1919. He died on November 28, 1924, in New York City. He was interred in Evergreen Cemetery in Morristown,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
.


Conspiracy theory

Lacombe wrote a letter to the New York Times advancing a conspiracy theory about the German sinking of the
RMS Lusitania RMS ''Lusitania'' (named after the Roman province in Western Europe corresponding to modern Portugal) was a British ocean liner that was launched by the Cunard Line in 1906 and that held the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlanti ...
in 1915. His letter was published Monday, October 22, 1917, on page 14 titled "A NEW THEORY OF THE LUSITANIA SINKING. The Evidence of the German Medal Dated May 5 and the Report of the Explosive "Cigars" on Board."


References


Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lacombe, Emile Henry 1846 births 1924 deaths 19th-century American judges Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Morristown, New Jersey) Columbia Law School alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit United States federal judges appointed by Grover Cleveland