Robert R. Merhige, Jr.
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Robert Reynold Merhige Jr. (February 5, 1919 – February 18, 2005) was a United States district judge of the
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (in case citations, E.D. Va.) is one of two United States district courts serving the Commonwealth of Virginia. It has jurisdiction over the Northern Virginia, Hampton Roa ...
who was known for his rulings on desegregation in the 1970s.


Education and career

Born February 5, 1919, in New York City,
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, Merhige attended
High Point College High Point University is a private university in High Point, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The university was founded as High Point College in 1924, and it became High Point University in October 1991. HPU of ...
in North Carolina and received a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Richmond School of Law in 1942. He later received a Master of Laws from the
University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...
in 1982. He served in the United States Army Air Corps from 1942 to 1945, flying many missions in
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...
bombers during World War II. He entered private practice in
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, Virginia from 1945 to 1967. He taught law at the Smithdeal-Massey School of Law from 1945 to 1948. He was vice president and general counsel for the Crass Coca-Cola Bottling Company from 1952 to 1955. He was a lecturer at the University of Virginia from 1968 to 1972. He was an adjunct professor at the University of Richmond School of Law from 1973 to 1976.


Federal judicial service

Merhige was nominated by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 17, 1967, to a seat on the
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (in case citations, E.D. Va.) is one of two United States district courts serving the Commonwealth of Virginia. It has jurisdiction over the Northern Virginia, Hampton Roa ...
vacated by Judge
John D. Butzner Jr. John Decker Butzner Jr. (October 2, 1917 – January 20, 2006) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for ...
He was confirmed by the United States Senate on August 18, 1967, and received his commission on August 25, 1967. He was a member of the
Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...
from 1980 to 1985. He assumed senior status on November 30, 1986. He was a member of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation from 1990 to 1998. His service terminated on June 8, 1998, due to his retirement.


Notable cases

Although the first stage of
Massive Resistance Massive resistance was a strategy declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd Sr. of Virginia and his brother-in-law James M. Thomson, who represented Alexandria in the Virginia General Assembly, to get the state's white politicians to pass laws and p ...
to desegregation of Virginia's schools was over (which even included United States District Judge C. Sterling Hutcheson retiring from the bench rather than enforce '' Brown v. Board of Education''), segregation remained. Early in his long judicial career, Merhige ordered dozens of Virginia's public school systems to desegregate, and for a time was considered the most hated man in Richmond—under 24-hour protection by the United States Marshals Service and with weekly protests at his home, his mother-in-law's cottage on his property was burned to the ground, and his dog tied up and shot dead. Black families moved into white urban neighborhoods in Richmond throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and by the 1970s white flight to
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in neighboring counties had left the Richmond city schools predominately black. In January 1972, Merhige ruled that students in Henrico and
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counties in Virginia would have to be bused to the
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...
city schools in order to decrease the high percentage of black students in Richmond's schools. Critics focused on Judge Merhige personally, including noting that his own children were enrolled in private school and thus unaffected by his order. One of Merhige's orders in that case was overturned by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on June 6, 1972, barring most busing schemes that made students cross county/city boundaries, but not before influencing that year's
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in
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, Florida. (Note: Since 1871, Virginia has had independent cities which are not politically located within counties, although some are completely surrounded geographically by a single county. This distinctive and unusual arrangement was pivotal in the Court of Appeals decision overturning Merhige's ruling). Merhige's courage and strength of character, as well as his preparation, courtesy, dedication to the rule of law and respect for the litigants before him ultimately turned that hatred into deep respect. In 1970 Judge Merhige ordered the University of Virginia to admit women. He also clarified the rights of pregnant women to keep their jobs, and with United States Bankruptcy Judge
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handled the complex products liability litigation and bankruptcy reorganization of the A. H. Robins Company concerning the Dalkon Shield. Moreover, by 1988, some noticed that Merhige was one of the federal judges with the lowest percentage (5%) of being overruled by appellate panels. In 1968 Merhige ruled that the conflict in Vietnam was a war, whether or not it was a declared war, and denied the request of 96 Army reservists to avoid that combat. Judge Merhige also presided over the complex litigation concerning
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's discharges of
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and other chemicals into the
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, approving the creation of an environmental trust fund. Merhige authored the ruling of the three federal judge panel that rejected the appeals of
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criminals
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,
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, and
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and upheld their criminal convictions for breaking into the office of
Daniel Ellsberg Daniel Ellsberg (born April 7, 1931) is an American political activist, and former United States military analyst. While employed by the RAND Corporation, Ellsberg precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released the ''Pent ...
's psychiatrist. Merhige presided over the Greensboro massacre trials of members of the
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and American Nazi Party for killing Communist Workers Party members in 1979.


Retirement, death and legacy

Merhige retired from the federal bench on June 8, 1998, and joined the
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of
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in Richmond with a practice focusing on mediation. Merhige died on February 18, 2005, at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical College of Virginia in Richmond after undergoing open heart surgery. One recollection has him faithfully at a dry cleaners every Friday at the appointed hour of 8:00 am. Though the attendant was always late, he persisted, saying that, "Unbelievable, the control this woman has over a federal judge!" In 2008, the new federal courthouse in Richmond (to which the district and bankruptcy courts and probation office moved) was named to honor Merhige and
Spottswood Robinson III Spottswood William Robinson III (July 26, 1916 – October 11, 1998) was an American educator, civil rights attorney, and a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit after previously se ...
, who fought many desegregation battles in Virginia before also becoming a distinguished federal judge. In 1993, the building where they had practiced as lawyers and judges was renamed the
Lewis F. Powell Jr. United States Courthouse The Lewis F. Powell Jr. United States Courthouse, also known as the U.S. Post Office and Customhouse, is a historic custom house, post office and courthouse located in Richmond, Virginia. Originally constructed in 1858, it was for decades a courtho ...
, after their longtime friend and colleague. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit continues to use that National Historic Landmark building. The Center for Environmental Studies at the University of Richmond School of Law is named in his honor, as is the moot court room. The William Taylor Muse Law Library at the University of Richmond holds his papers in its special collections.Lohman, Bill. "A Judge's Legacy". Richmond Law Magazine, 2005, p. 15.


References


Sources


FJC Bio
*Ronald J. Bacigal, May it please the court: a biography of Judge Robert R. Merhige Jr. (University Press of America, 1992) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Merhige, Robert R. Jr. 1919 births 2005 deaths Virginia lawyers Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia United States district court judges appointed by Lyndon B. Johnson 20th-century American judges United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II Lawyers from New York City High Point University alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni University of Richmond School of Law alumni University of Virginia faculty University of Richmond faculty