John J. Dillon Jr. (1926 – June 21, 1983) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who served as the thirty-fifth

Indiana Attorney General The Indiana Attorney General is the chief legal officer of the State of Indiana in the United States. Attorneys General are chosen by a statewide general election to serve for a four-year term. The forty-fourth and Attorney General is Todd Roki ...

from January 11, 1965, to January 13, 1969.

Biography

Early life and education

Dillon attended and graduated from

Xavier University Xavier University ( ) is a private Jesuit university in Cincinnati and Evanston (Cincinnati), Ohio. It is the sixth-oldest Catholic and fourth-oldest Jesuit university in the United States. Xavier has an undergraduate enrollment of 4,860 studen ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. Dillon then attended the

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law The Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is located on the campus of Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, Indiana, the urban campus of Indiana University. In the summer of 2001 ...

, graduating in 1952. Dillon served in

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

during the

Second World War 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 ...

. He later became a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in the

Indiana National Guard The Indiana National Guard (INNG) is a component of the United States Armed Forces, the United States National Guard and the Military Department of Indiana (MDI). It consists of the Indiana Army National Guard, the Indiana Air National Guard, a ...

. In 1964, Dillon traveled with other members of the Indiana National Guard for two weeks of field training in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

Political career

Dillon was very active within the

Indiana Democratic Party The Democratic Party of Indiana is the affiliate of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Indiana. The Indiana Democratic Party currently holds two of Indiana's United States congressional delegations from I ...

. He held various positions within the state party and was a chairman of the Indiana Young Democrats. Dillon served as

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

City Attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city at ...

from 1956 to 1965. Dillon was the Democratic nominee in the race for

in 1960, but was defeated by incumbent Edwin K. Steers. Dillon was the nominee for state AG in the 1964 race and won in a rematch against Steers. Dillon served in the administration of Democratic

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Roger D. Branigin Roger Douglas Branigin (July 26, 1902 – November 19, 1975) was an American politician who was the List of governors of Indiana, 42nd governor of Indiana, serving from January 11, 1965, to January 13, 1969. A World War II veteran and well-kno ...

. As Attorney General, Dillon helped to pass and implement new abandoned property laws, assisted in

interstate highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

construction, and enforced state

anti-trust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

laws. Future

U.S. 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 ...

and prominent state politician

Virginia Dill McCarty Virginia Dill McCarty (December 15, 1924 – May 26, 2006) was an American lawyer who served as the U.S. Attorney for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana from 1977 to 1981, and became the first woman to be appointed an ...

served as assistant attorney general under Dillon. Despite speculation that Dillon would run for Governor in

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

, he instead sought re-election, but was defeated. Dillon was succeeded to the office by Theodore L. Sendak.

Personal life and death

Dillon was

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Dillon's son, John J. Dillon III, was a lawyer and was appointed by Governor

Evan Bayh Birch Evans Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh w ...

to serve as commissioner of the Indiana Department of Insurance in 1989. Dillon was the director of the Indianapolis Legal Aid Society. He was also a member of the Indianapolis

Bar Association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence. The word bar is derived from the old English/European custom of using a physical railing to separ ...

, the

Indiana State Bar Association The Indiana State Bar Association (ISBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of Indiana. Unlike some state bar associations, in which membership is mandatory, ISBA membership is not required of lawyers licensed to practice in Indiana. Th ...

, and 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 ...

. Dillon died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

in 1983 while at a training encampment at

Camp Grayling Camp Grayling is a military training facility located near Grayling, Michigan, primarily in Crawford County, and spread over three counties. Camp Grayling is the main training facility for the Michigan National Guard and is the largest US National ...

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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dillon, John 1926 births 1983 deaths People from Indianapolis Indiana Attorneys General Indiana Republicans Xavier University alumni Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law alumni United States Air Force officers Indiana National Guard personnel Catholics from Indiana