Green Wix Unthank (June 14, 1923 – June 25, 2013) was an American attorney and

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky (in case citations, E.D. Ky.) is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises approximately the Eastern half of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The United States Cour ...

, from 1980 to 1988, when he took senior status. A veteran of World War II, he went to college and to law school after the war. He served as a judge of Harlan County Court, had a private practice for several years, and also served as an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

Education and career

Unthank was born on June 14, 1923 in Tway,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, an unincorporated community in Harlan County. He was the son of Green W. Unthank and Estelle (née Howard) Unthank, who were both teachers in the Harlan County public school system. After graduating from Loyall High School in 1940, Unthank enlisted 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 ...

, serving during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as a

paratrooper A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...

in the

509th Infantry Regiment The 509th Infantry Regiment (previously the 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment) is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army. The unit was initially activated as a single battalion, the 504th Parachute Infantry Battalion, in Octo ...

. He was awarded the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

and a

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

, the latter due to injuries sustained in 1943 from a German hand grenade while in enemy territory. He was honorably discharged in 1945. After the war, Unthank completed his undergraduate degree and law school. He earned a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the

University of Miami School of Law The University of Miami School of Law (Miami Law or UM Law) is the law school of the University of Miami, a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. Founded in 1926, the University of Miami School of Law is the oldest law school in ...

in 1950. He served as a judge of the Harlan County Court in Kentucky from 1951 to 1958, where he used the name G. Wix Unthank professionally. After this tenure, he entered private law practice. He served as an

for the Eastern District of Kentucky from 1966 to 1969. He was appointed as Commonwealth's Attorney of the 26th Judicial District of Kentucky, serving from 1979 to 1980.

Federal judicial service

On December 19, 1979, Unthank was nominated by President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

to a new seat on the

, created by . 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 June 18, 1980, and received his commission the same day. 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 ...

involuntarily certified Unthank as disabled on November 30, 1987, pursuant to 71 Stat. 586. Pursuant to the certification, Unthank 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 June 14, 1988, but continued to maintain a substantial caseload.

Death

Unthank died on June 25, 2013, in Harlan, Kentucky at the age of 90. He was survived by his wife, Marilyn Ward Unthank.

Honors and legacy

On August 14, 2017, the Green Wix Unthank Memorial Bridge was dedicated in his honor. It crosses the Clover Fork River in Harlan County, Kentucky.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Unthank, Green Wix 1923 births 2013 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II Assistant United States Attorneys Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky Kentucky state court judges People from Harlan County, Kentucky United States Army soldiers United States district court judges appointed by Jimmy Carter 20th-century American judges University of Kentucky alumni University of Miami School of Law alumni