Thomas Norman Brooks (August 23, 1924 – September 23, 1992) was an American farmer and

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

politician. He was a member of the

Mississippi Legislature The Mississippi Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The bicameral Legislature is composed of the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, with 122 members, and the upper Mississippi State Senate, with 52 me ...

almost continuously from 1952 to 1985, when he was convicted and

jailed A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correct ...

for influence peddling. He also was the president pro tempore of the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, convenes at the Mississippi State Capitol ...

from 1984 to his incarceration.

Biography

Thomas Norman Brooks was born on August 23, 1924, in Walnut Grove, Mississippi. He graduated from Freeny High School and Millsaps College. He fought in the

U. S. 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 ...

in World War II and received a Purple Heart. He represented

Leake County Leake County is a county located in the center of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,275. Its county seat is Carthage. The county is named for Walter Leake, the Governor of Mississippi from 1822 t ...

in the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...

from 1952 to 1960. He then became a member of the

, representing the 17th district in the 1960–1964 term. He returned to the Senate in 1968, and served until 1985. In 1984, he became the president pro tempore of the

. However, in 1985, he was convicted for influence peddling, and spent years in a minimum-security prison in Alabama. He died on September 23, 1992, in Freeny, Leake County, Mississippi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Thomas Norman 1924 births 1992 deaths People from Leake County, Mississippi Mississippi state senators Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives Presidents pro tempore of the Mississippi State Senate American politicians convicted of corruption