Jonathan Uhry Newman (January 9, 1927 – October 24, 1991) was an American attorney and judge.

Biography

Johnathan Newman was born on January 9, 1927, in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, to

Rabbi Louis Israel Newman Louis Israel Newman (December 20, 1893 – March 9, 1972) was a prominent United States Reform rabbi and author. Early life Born in Providence, Rhode Island, on December 20, 1893, to Paul and Antonia (née Hecker) Newman, Louis Israel Newman at ...

and Lucille Uhry Newman. He attended

Ethical Culture Fieldston School Ethical Culture Fieldston School (ECFS), also referred to as Fieldston, is a private independent school in New York City. The school is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League. The school serves approximately 1,700 students with 480 facult ...

and then went on to

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, graduating

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

in 1948. He then attended

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

, graduating in 1951. In 1951, Newman married Carol Laura Spero, sister of artist,

Nancy Spero Nancy Spero (August 24, 1926 – October 18, 2009) was an American visual artist. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Spero lived for much of her life in New York City. She married and collaborated with artist Leon Golub. As both artist and activist, Nanc ...

. In 1953, Newman moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, where he practiced law. He was a founding member of the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

of Oregon, serving as its first secretary and as a board member between 1955-1968. In 1982, the Oregon ACLU awarded him its highest honor, the E.B. MacNaughton Civil Liberties Award. From 1968-1979 Newman served on the Portland school board and was "a driving force behind desegregating the schools". In 1982, he was elected to the

Oregon Court of Appeals The Oregon Court of Appeals is the state intermediate appellate court in the US state of Oregon. Part of the Oregon Judicial Department, it has thirteen judges and is located in Salem. Except for death penalty cases, which are reserved to the O ...

where he served until 1991. On October 24, 1991, Newman died of leukemia in Portland, Oregon. He routinely hiked on the weekends throughout the 1950s until his death and Newman's memorial service was held at the base of the Topspur Trailhead (#785) in the

Mount Hood National Forest The Mount Hood National Forest is a U.S. National Forest in the U.S. state of Oregon, located east of the city of Portland and the northern Willamette River valley. The Forest extends south from the Columbia River Gorge across more than of fore ...

where his friends dedicated a plaque. It sits on a stone at the beginning of the trail as of August 2016. The annual Jonathan U. Newman Legal Citizen of the Year Award given by Classroom Law Project to recognize leadership in civic education and engagement is named after Judge Newman.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Newman, Jonathan U. 1927 births 1991 deaths Jewish American attorneys Lawyers from San Francisco Lawyers from Portland, Oregon Oregon Court of Appeals judges Yale Law School alumni School board members in Oregon Ethical Culture Fieldston School alumni 20th-century American judges