H. James Shea, Jr.
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Herman James "Jim" Shea Jr. (December 10, 1939 – May 9, 1970) was an American politician from the state of
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. A resident of
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for most of his life, he graduated from
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...
and, after dropping out of the
University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...
, found employment as a
civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...
,
real estate broker Real estate agents and real estate brokers are people who represent sellers or buyers of real estate or real property. While a broker may work independently, an agent usually works under a licensed broker to represent clients. Brokers and age ...
, and university instructor. A progressive member of the Democratic Party, he served on the Newton Board of Aldermen as well as in the
Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...
. From his election to the House in 1968, freshman legislator Shea engaged in activism against the Vietnam War and supported the burgeoning modern environmental movement. A bill he sponsored, which later bore his name, exempted Massachusetts residents from being
conscripted Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it contin ...
into federal service in
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foreign conflicts. While it passed the legislature and was signed into law by Governor
Francis Sargent Francis Williams Sargent (July 29, 1915 – October 22, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 63rd lieutenant governo ...
, the
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declined to hear the state's challenge to the war's constitutionality in Massachusetts v. Laird. Already feeling overworked soon after he entered the legislature, Shea was frequently asked to speak and floated as a candidate for higher office. Succumbing to what his wife described as "political pressures," he committed
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...
by gunshot at the age of 30.


Early life and family


Childhood and education

Shea was born on December 10, 1939, in
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, Massachusetts, the first of three sons of Eileen (
née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
Curtin; 1911–2002) and Herman James Shea Sr. (1911–1998). His father, the son of
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
treasurer Dennis J. Shea, was a
civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...
and member of the faculty at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
. He grew up in
Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: People * Newton (surname), including a list of people with the surname * ...
and attended public schools there, including Newton High School, from which he graduated in 1957. He then went on to
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...
, where he earned a degree in
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
, with a minor in
economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
; he attended the
University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...
, following this, but left after completing 34 credit hours. Before devoting himself to politics full-time, he was employed as civil engineer and
real estate broker Real estate agents and real estate brokers are people who represent sellers or buyers of real estate or real property. While a broker may work independently, an agent usually works under a licensed broker to represent clients. Brokers and age ...
. He also completed graduate work and served as a
teaching assistant A teaching assistant (TA) or education assistant (EA) is an individual who assists a professor or teacher with instructional responsibilities. TAs include ''graduate teaching assistants'' (GTAs), who are graduate students; ''undergraduate teach ...
in political science at
Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
.


Marriage

In June 1967, Shea married the former Anita Vesta McDonald, an instructor of
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at
Salem State College Salem State University (Salem State or SSU) is a public university in Salem, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1854, it is the oldest and largest institute of higher education on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore and is p ...
, at Saint Mary's Catholic Church in
Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a City (New Jersey), city in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",
. L. James DeWolfe Jr. served as his best man. The couple settled in Newton after a honeymoon through
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and
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.


Political career


Local politics

Shea first ran for an at-large seat on the Newton Board of Aldermen in 1963. In a race for two spots from Ward 7, he ran on a progressive platform that included providing public records of board attendance and activities. He placed a distant fourth among the candidates. In November 1965, he ran again, this time for the Ward 7 seat being vacated by incumbent William Carmen, and initially came in 8 votes behind
Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...
professor Harry H. Crosby. After a recount, Shea was given 961 votes to Crosby's 958. The battle made its way to the
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously fu ...
, which declared Shea the winner the following April, after more than five months of uncertainty. Two years later, in 1967, Shea ran for reelection unopposed. He compiled a liberal voting record, earning himself a 100% rating – the highest of anyone on the Board of Aldermen – from the Massachusetts chapter of
Americans for Democratic Action Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) is a liberal American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA views itself as supporting social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research, and supporting p ...
.


State politics and anti-war activism

In 1968, state representative Joseph G. Bradley decided against running for reelection in the newly drawn 12th Middlesex district and instead challenged longtime 3rd district congressman
Philip J. Philbin Philip Joseph Philbin (May 29, 1898 – June 14, 1972) was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts. He was born in Clinton, Massachusetts, where he attended the public and high schools. From 1917 until 1919, during the First World ...
in the September 17 Democratic Party
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. Philbin, the second highest ranking member of the
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, was perceived as being hawkish on
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
, while Bradley, one of the first politicians in the state to oppose the bombing of North Vietnam, aligned himself with the
anti-war An anti-war movement is a social movement in opposition to one or more nations' decision to start or carry on an armed conflict. The term ''anti-war'' can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conf ...
faction of the party. Shea endorsed Bradley and mounted a campaign to succeed him in the state house. While Bradley was not successful in his race, Shea was. He surprised poll watchers by ending up the top Democratic vote-getter in the district, receiving 277 more votes than Bradley's seatmate, Paul F. Malloy. Malloy and Shea bested Republican nominees Wigmore A. Pierson and Nelson M. Silk Jr. in the November general election. Shea was opposed to the Vietnam War, and sponsored a bill under which Massachusetts residents could refuse to fight abroad in undeclared wars, thereby setting up a possible constitutional test of the Viet Nam War. The landmark legislation was passed by the legislature and signed into law by the governor. Though it was later overturned by the Supreme Court, Shea's bill had wide-reaching impact at the time, including the passage of the War Powers Act in 1974, which limited the amount of time in which a President could conduct military operations before going to Congress for a declaration of war or other justification.


Death and funeral

On May 8, 1970, Shea and his wife went to the home of Joseph M. McDonnell, a Newton alderman and friend, where they spent the evening socializing. Upon returning to their residence on Princess Road in West Newton at approximately 12:30 the following morning, Shea went to an upstairs room he used as an office and closed the door. When his wife went to check on him, he raised the .38 caliber
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he owned to his head and fired. He had reportedly been under "political pressure" at the time. After Shea's wife phoned McDonnell, who called the police, Shea was transported to
Newton-Wellesley Hospital Newton-Wellesley Hospital (NWH) is a community teaching medical center located in Newton, Massachusetts on Washington Street. It is affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School. Founded in 1881, part of its ca ...
, where he was declared dead on arrival at 12:55 am. Following services at Our Lady Help of Christians Church in Newtonville on May 11, Shea was buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in
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. Attendees at the funeral included U.S. Senator
Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts who served as a member of the United States Senate from 1962 to his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic Party and ...
, Congressman Philip Philbin, Massachusetts Attorney General Robert H. Quinn, and state treasurer Robert Q. Crane. Senate President Maurice A. Donahue and House Speaker David M. Bartley were among the honorary
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s.


Legacy

Businessman
Robert Kraft Robert Kenneth Kraft (born June 5, 1941) is an American billionaire businessman. He is the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Kraft Group, a diversified holding company with assets in paper and packaging, sports and entertainmen ...
was elected chairman of the Newton City Democratic Committee in 1968. The death of Shea, a friend, deterred Kraft from further pursuing a career in politics, including a 1970 congressional run. Shea's
legislative assistant A legislative assistant (LA), legislative analyst, legislative research assistant, or legislative associate, is a person who works for a legislator as a legislative staffer in a semi-political partisan capacity, in a non-partisan capacity at a th ...
, John Businger, successfully ran for a seat in the Massachusetts House in 1970 and served until 1999.


See also

* List of American politicians of Irish descent *
List of peace activists This list of peace activists includes people who have proactively advocated Diplomacy, diplomatic, philosophical, and non-military resolution of major territorial or ideological disputes through nonviolent means and methods. Peace activists usua ...
*
List of suicides :''This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.' The following notable people have died by suicide. This includes suicides effected under duress and excludes deaths by accident or misadventure. People who may or may not have died ...


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shea, H. James Jr. 1939 births 1970 suicides 1970 deaths Politicians from Boston Politicians from Newton, Massachusetts Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences alumni Democratic Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives American anti–Vietnam War activists American politicians who died by suicide Suicides by firearm in Massachusetts Burials at St. Joseph Cemetery (West Roxbury, Massachusetts) 20th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court