Frank John Magill (June 3, 1927 – June 2, 2013) 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 Eighth Circuit.

Early life and career

Born in

Verona, North Dakota Verona is a city in LaMoure County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 59 at the 2020 census. Verona was founded in 1886. Geography Verona is located at (46.365230, -98.071423). According to the United States Census Bureau, the c ...

on June 3, 1927, Magill served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

as a seaman from 1945 to 1947. Magill received a

Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It is considered to be one of the world's leading international affairs schools, granting degrees at both ...

from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

in 1951, a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

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 ...

in 1953, 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 ...

from Georgetown University in 1955. After graduation, he worked in private law practice in

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...

until 1986.

Federal judicial service

Following the recommendation of Senator Mark Andrews, on January 21, 1986, Magill was nominated by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated by Judge Myron H. Bright. Magill 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 March 3, 1986, and received his commission on March 4, 1986. He took the oath and commenced service on April 1, 1986. Magill wrote several opinions in the noted case of ''Black Hills Institute of Geological Research v. U.S. Dept. of Justice'', which dealt with the ownership of the fossil of a '' Tyrannosaurus rex'' named Sue. Over the course of his service, Magill also sat by designation on a total of six cases heard in three other circuits - the

Third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

, Fifth, and

Ninth In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

. Among the cases that Magill heard while sitting on the Ninth Circuit was ''

Silveira v. Lockyer ''Silveira v. Lockyer,'' 312 F.3d 1052 (9th Cir. 2002), is a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruling that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution did not guarantee individuals the right to bear arm ...

'', in which the court, with Magill concurring, ruled that the

Second Amendment to the United States Constitution The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the Right to keep and bear arms in the United States, right to keep and bear arms. It was ratified on December 15, 1791, along with nine other articles of the Un ...

did not guarantee individuals the

right to bear arms The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, including securi ...

. Magill assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

on April 1, 1997, serving in that status until his death.

Family

Magill's daughter, Liz Magill served as the ninth president of the University of Pennsylvania from 2022 to 2023. Previously, she was the dean of Stanford Law School, and the provost of the University of Virginia. Magill's son, Francis J. Magill, Jr., is a Minnesota District Court Judge.

Death

Magill died on June 2, 2013, in Fargo.

Notes

Sources

* 1927 births 2013 deaths 20th-century American judges Columbia University alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit North Dakota lawyers People from LaMoure County, North Dakota Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni United States court of appeals judges appointed by Ronald Reagan United States Navy sailors {{US-federal-judge-stub