Walter Rayford Tucker III (born May 28, 1957) is an American politician and minister who served as mayor of

Compton Compton may refer to: Places Canada * Compton (electoral district), a former Quebec federal electoral district * Compton (provincial electoral district), a former Quebec provincial electoral district now part of Mégantic-Compton * Compton, Que ...

and a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from California.

Parents and education

Tucker was born in

Compton, California Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and, on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city in Los Angeles County to incorporat ...

, the son of

Walter R. Tucker, Jr. Walter Rayford Tucker Jr. (August 27, 1924 – October 1, 1990) was an American dentist and politician who served nine years as the Mayor of Compton, California. Biography Walter Rayford Tucker, Jr. was born in Oklahoma. He became a dentist ...

, a dentist who was mayor of Compton beginning in 1981. The younger Tucker finished Compton High School in 1974 as class valedictorian and attended Princeton University for the next two years. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1978 with a degree in political science and earned his J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1981. He was admitted to the

California State Bar The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...

in 1984.Profile
''Congressional Biographical Directory''. Accessed September 5, 2022.Charles Jackson Jr., "Former Mayor of Compton Man of God Today," ''City Pride Magazine,'' September 2013.

Professional life

Legal practice and mayor of Compton

Tucker was a Los Angeles County deputy

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

from 1984 to 1986, when he began in private practice as a

criminal defense attorney A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer (mostly barristers) specializing in the defense of individuals and companies charged with criminal activity. Some criminal defense lawyers are privately retained, while others are employed by the various jur ...

. After Tucker's father died while still in office as mayor of Compton, the younger Tucker won a special election to replace him, becoming the youngest mayor in the city's history at age 33. He served from 1991 to 1992, during the civil unrest in Los Angeles County spawned by the Rodney King verdict.

Congressional career

In 1992, Tucker was elected to the House of Representatives as a

Democrat 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 ...

, defeating Lynn Dymally, the daughter of the retiring Representative Mervyn Dymally.

In Congress, Tucker served on the Committee on Public Works and Transportation and the
House Small Business Committee The United States House Committee on Small Business is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It was established in 1941 as the House Select Committee on Small Business. History On December 4, 1941, the U. S. House of ...
, He introduced legislation promoting
Random Acts of Kindness A random act of kindness is a nonpremeditated, inconsistent action designed to offer kindness towards the outside world. The phrase "practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty" was written by Anne Herbert on a placemat in Sausalito, Cal ...
, opposed passage of the
North American Free Trade Agreement The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA ; es, Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, TLCAN; french: Accord de libre-échange nord-américain, ALÉNA) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that crea ...
(NAFTA), fought to save the
Long Beach Naval Shipyard The Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Long Beach NSY or LBNSY), which closed in 1997, was located on Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles, approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International ...
, and worked to ensure the successful development of the Alameda Corridor Project. He also worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to secure federal funding to repair the long neglected
Compton Creek Compton Creek is a major tributary of the Los Angeles River in and surrounding Compton in Los Angeles County, California. The stream drains a watershed of . and is the last major tributary to enter the Los Angeles River before it reaches the P ...
, thus eliminating the possibility of costly flood damage to the homes and property on either side of the waterway.

Tucker resigned from Congress on December 15, 1995, due to scandals involving accepting and demanding bribes while mayor of Compton. Tucker was sentenced to 27 months in prison in 1996 for extortion and tax evasion.

Ministry

Tucker began his active

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

while at the Federal Prison Camp in Lompoc, California. After his release he was hired as the Helps Ministry manager for Crenshaw Christian Center in Los Angeles, and he then joined with Charles Colson's Prison Fellowship Ministry as Los Angeles area director. He moved with his family to Chicago, where for nine years he was pastor of the From the Heart Church Ministries of Chicago. He is now the pastor of the Truth and Love Christian Church in

Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...

Personal

Tucker is married to Robin Smith, and they have two children, Walter R. Tucker IV and Autumn Monet Tucker. He has two sisters, Keta and Camillie, and a brother, Kenneth.

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, Walter R., Iii 1957 births 20th-century African-American people 20th-century criminals 21st-century African-American people African-American mayors in California African-American members of the United States House of Representatives African-American people in California politics American members of the clergy convicted of crimes American people convicted of tax crimes California politicians convicted of crimes Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California Georgetown University Law Center alumni Living people Mayors of Compton, California Politicians convicted of extortion under color of official right University of Southern California alumni