Marvin H. Smith (August 10, 1916 – September 27, 2010) was a jurist on the Maryland Court of Appeals from 1968 to 1986.

Early life

Marvin Hugh Smith was born on August 10, 1916, in

Federalsburg, Maryland Federalsburg is a town in Caroline County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,739 at the 2010 United States Census. It has one high school, Colonel Richardson High School. History According to a contemporary source, the town was name ...

to Jeannette (née Brown) and Charles H. Smith. He graduated from Federalsburg High School in 1933. He is credited as becoming the first

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

of Caroline County in 1934. Smith graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts 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 ...

from Washington College in 1937. He graduated with a LL.B. in 1941 from the

University of Maryland Law School The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (formerly University of Maryland School of Law) is the law school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is located in Baltimore City, Maryland, U.S. Its location places Maryland ...

. He was admitted to the bar in Maryland in 1941.

Career

Military career

Smith was inducted into 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 ...

on November 18, 1941. 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 ...

, Smith served as a special agent in the U.S. Army Counterintelligence Corps (CIC) from 1941 to his discharge on November 24, 1945. He served in the Military District of Washington Detachment as Chief of the Review Section at the start of the war. Smith then served as Chief of the Administrative Section of the 705th CIC Detachment and was assigned to the Air Service Command in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...

. Smith then served as the Chief of the Review Section of the 706th CIC Detachment assigned to the

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Law career

Smith began practicing law in

Denton, Maryland Denton is a town in Caroline County, Maryland, United States. The population of Denton was 4,418 as of the 2010 United States Census, and it is the county seat of Caroline County. History Denton was established in 1781. It was first called Eden T ...

in January 1946. He continued practicing in Denton until May 20, 1968. He also served on the Caroline County Board of Education from 1951 to 1953, serving as president from 1952 to 1953. Smith served as the assistant attorney general of Maryland from 1953 to 1955. Smith was appointed associate judge on the Maryland Court of Appeals on May 20, 1968, and served in that role until his retirement on August 10, 1986. He also served twice on the

Maryland State Bar Association The Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of Maryland. The association pursues the following mission: "to effectively represent Maryland’s lawyers, to provide member services, and to promote profes ...

's Board of Governors.

Personal life

Smith married Rebecca Groves on February 21, 1942. Together they had three children: Melissa, M. Hugh and Sarah J. He was an active

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...

, member of the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

and scout leader with the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...

Death

Smith died on September 27, 2010, at Dorchester General Hospital in Cambridge, Maryland. He is buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in Federalsburg.

Awards

* 1980 – honorary LL.D. degree from Washington College * 1984 – Alumnus of the Year, University of Maryland Law School * 1986 – H. Vernon Eney Award, Maryland Bar Foundation

References

1916 births 2010 deaths People from Caroline County, Maryland Washington College alumni University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law alumni United States Army personnel of World War II Judges of the Supreme Court of Maryland 20th-century American judges {{Maryland-state-judge-stub