John David Clifford Jr. (May 15, 1887 – November 18, 1956) was a

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 District of Maine The U.S. District Court for the District of Maine (in case citations, D. Me.) is the U.S. district court for the state of Maine. The District of Maine was one of the original thirteen district courts established by the Judiciary Act of 178 ...

Education and career

Born in Lewiston,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

, Clifford 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 from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

in 1910 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 Law in 1913. Clifford practiced law in Lewiston from 1914 until 1947. He had been active in the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

prior to his federal appointments and was a member of the

Maine House of Representatives The Maine House of Representatives is the lower house of the Maine Legislature. The House consists of 151 voting members and three nonvoting members. The voting members represent an equal number of districts across the state and are elected via p ...

from 1915 to 1916. He was 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 ...

for the District of Maine from 1933 to 1947.

Federal judicial service

On January 10, 1947, Clifford was nominated by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

to a seat on the

vacated by Judge John A. Peters. Clifford 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 14, 1947, and received his commission on March 24, 1947. He held that office until his death on November 18, 1956.

Family

On July 14, 1915, he married Lucile E. Smith of

Lansing Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, makin ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, the daughter of Rep.

John M. C. Smith John M. C. Smith (February 6, 1853 – March 30, 1923) was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He served as U.S. Representative from Michigan's 3rd congressional district. Biography Smith was born in 1853 in Belfast on the Ireland, ...

. Clifford's nephew,

Robert W. Clifford Robert William Clifford (born May 2, 1937) is an American politician, lawyer and retired associate justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. He was appointed to this position on August 1, 1986 by then-governor Joseph Brennan. He was reappointe ...

, son-in-law,

Thomas E. Delahanty Thomas E. Delahanty (July 26, 1914 – February 4, 1985) was a justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. He was appointed to the position on September 5, 1973 and later served as active retired from August 31, 1979 until his death. Early ...

, and grandson,

Thomas E. Delahanty II Thomas E. Delahanty II (June 6, 1945 – April 12, 2021) was an American lawyer and former judge. He was the former United States Attorney for the District of Maine. Early life and education Delahanty was a graduate of Saint Michael's College in ...

, have been judges in

. His grandson, Thomas E. Delahanty II, has held the

position twice.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clifford, John David Jr. 1887 births 1956 deaths Bowdoin College alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni United States Attorneys for the District of Maine Democratic Party members of the Maine House of Representatives Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maine United States district court judges appointed by Harry S. Truman 20th-century American judges People from Lewiston, Maine