Michael Louis Fansler (July 4, 1883 – July 26, 1963) was an

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player,

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, and

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

who served as a justice of the

Indiana Supreme Court The Indiana Supreme Court, established by Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution, is the highest judicial authority in the state of Indiana. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, Indianapolis, the Court's chambers are in the north wing of the Indiana ...

from January 4, 1933, to January 1, 1945.Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

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'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page

Biography

Early life, education, and career

Fansler was born in Logansport,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

to Michael David and Johanna Fansler (née Mulcahy). Michael David Fansler (born 1857 in Wyandotte County,

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), the son of one of Logansport's early

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

s, was of Scots-Irish,

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, and

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descent. M.D. Fansler was a prominent local lawyer, serving for most of his career as a

prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the Civil law (legal system), civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the ...

. Johanna "Nannie" Fansler was the daughter of an Irish immigrant. Fansler began attending

Notre Dame Law School Notre Dame Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Notre Dame. Established in 1869, it is the oldest continuously operating Catholic law school in the United States. ND Law is ranked 22nd among the nation's "Top 1 ...

at the

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(in

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) in 1901. He was a member of the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the intercollegiate football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the campus' Notre Dame ...

team. Known to his teammates as "Big Mike" (he was over six feet tall), he played a variety of positions during his time on the team. He graduated and was admitted to the bar in 1905. Fansler returned to Cass County. From 1906 to 1910, he served as Assistant Prosecuting Attorney of the 29th Judicial Circuit, working under prosecutor George C. Custer. From 1910 to 1914, he served as the Prosecuting Attorney of the 29th Circuit, succeeding Custer. In 1915, Fansler became a partner at the private firm of Rabb, Mahoney, Fansler & Douglass. He remained at the firm until 1932. Fansler helped to organize a

liberty loan A liberty bond (or liberty loan) was a war bond that was sold in the United States to support the Allied cause in World War I. Subscribing to the bonds became a symbol of patriotic duty in the United States and introduced the idea of financi ...

drive in Cass County during the First World War. Fansler was a Democrat.

Judicial career and later life

Fansler became a justice of the

in 1933. In 1941, Fansler delivered a speech titled "Some Public Reactions to Procedural Methods" at a meeting of 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 ...

. Fansler left the court in 1945, succeeded by Justice

Oliver Starr Oliver Starr (December 10, 1883 – March 28, 1961) was a justice of the Indiana Supreme Court from January 1, 1945, to January 1, 1951. Early life, education, and career Born in Wells County, Indiana, Starr received an A.B. from Indiana Univer ...

. Fansler chaired the Indiana

Judicial Council The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

from 1951 to 1960.

Personal life and death

Fansler was a member of the

and the American Bar Association. He was also a member of the

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and an

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. Moses Lairy, another Indiana Supreme Court Justice (1915-1921), was a friend and mentor to Fansler. Fansler wrote a letter to Governor Paul V. McNutt to thank him for leading the Democrats to a landslide victory in the 1932 elections. In 1909, Fansler married Katherine Hall of Peru, Indiana. During the First World War, Katherine Fansler was a member of the Women's Section of the Indiana State

Council of Defense A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or na ...

, the Indiana branch of the nationwide volunteer organization that helped coordinate Americans resources and industry for the war effort. Fansler died in

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 ...

in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fansler, Michael 1883 births 1963 deaths People from Logansport, Indiana Notre Dame Law School alumni Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court American judges Indiana Democrats American people of Scotch-Irish descent American people of German descent American people of French descent