Herschel Hugar Friday (February 10, 1922 – March 1, 1994) was an

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

bond Bond or bonds may refer to: Common meanings * Bond (finance), a type of debt security * Bail bond, a commercial third-party guarantor of surety bonds in the United States * Chemical bond, the attraction of atoms, ions or molecules to form chemical ...

lawyer. He was best known for having been considered by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

for an appointment as

Associate Justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

of the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

in 1971. Also, he and his law firm represented the

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

School District during the 1957 Central High School Crisis, and defended various school districts in Arkansas against

desegregation Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...

lawsuits throughout the 1960s. During the summer of 1971, both John Harlan and

Hugo Black Hugo Lafayette Black (February 27, 1886 – September 25, 1971) was an American lawyer, politician, and jurist who served as a U.S. Senator from Alabama from 1927 to 1937 and as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1937 to 1971. A ...

announced their intention to retire from the Supreme Court. Nixon strongly considered nominating Friday and

California Court of Appeals The California Courts of Appeal are the state intermediate appellate courts in the U.S. state of California. The state is geographically divided along county lines into six appellate districts.

judge

Mildred Lillie Mildred Loree Lillie (January 25, 1915 – October 27, 2002) was an American jurist. She served as a judge for 55 years in the state of California with a career that spanned from 1947 until her death in 2002. In 1958, she became the second woman t ...

to the open seats. Also under consideration by Nixon were:

Robert C. Byrd Robert Carlyle Byrd (born Cornelius Calvin Sale Jr.; November 20, 1917 – June 28, 2010) was an American politician and musician who served as a United States senator from West Virginia for over 51 years, from 1959 until his death in 2010. A ...

Sylvia Bacon Sylvia A. Bacon (born July 9, 1931) is a former judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia who was considered by both Richard NixonJohn Dean, "Cast of Characters: Candidates considered for the Supreme Court", ''The Rehnquist Choice: Th ...

, Charles Clark and

Paul Hitch Roney Paul Hitch Roney (September 5, 1921 – September 16, 2006) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Education and career Born ...

. The

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

's Committee on the Federal Judiciary, which since 1952 has provided its analysis and a recommendation on each nominees' professional qualifications to sit on the Supreme Court, voted 11–1 to give Lillie an "unqualified" rating, and, with eight votes necessary for a "qualified" rating, voted 6–6 on Friday, thus ending up as "not opposed" to his nomination. These were the first instances in which negative recommendations were issued by the ABA since it began participating in the Supreme Court nomination and confirmation process. Nixon also learned that the prospects of

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

confirmation for both Lilley and Friday were not good. In light of these developments, the president nominated Lewis Powell and

William H. Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from 1 ...

instead. Friday was informed of the change in plan only hours before the Powell and Rehnquist nominations were announced live on national television; reporters and friends were waiting for news at his house with him. Friday continued with his Arkansas law firm, Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP. He became recognized as one of the most influential lobbyists in the area, and he wielded his influence on behalf of the horse-racing interest Oaklawn Park. In 1988, he was particularly successful in getting Governor

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

to sign a tax package that was beneficial to horse-racing. Friday would later be a benefactor of Clinton as Governor and, later, President of the United States. Friday died on March 1, 1994, when he failed to maintain control of his aircraft, while maneuvering to land at Bobwhite Hill Ranch, Arkansas. The aircraft impacted the ground and was destroyed. Factors related to the accident were: darkness and possible spatial disorientation. He was survived by his wife, Beth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Friday, Hershel 1922 births 1994 deaths 20th-century American lawyers Accidental deaths in Arkansas Arkansas Democrats Arkansas lawyers Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States People from Sevier County, Arkansas University of Arkansas at Little Rock alumni University of Arkansas School of Law alumni Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1994

See also

References