Opinion
Opinion Delivered May 9, 2007
PER CURIAM ORDERS
In the Matter of the Death of Judge George Howard, Jr. See per curiam this date.
On April 21, 2007, the Honorable George Howard, Jr., United States District Judge for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, passed away in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Judge Howard was one of the original members of the Arkansas Court of Appeals by virtue of his appointment by Governor Bill Clinton in 1979. Before that appointment, Judge Howard served as an Associate Justice on the Arkansas Supreme Court from 1977 to 1978 by appointment of Governor David Pryor. He was serving on our Court of Appeals when he was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to become United States District Judge for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, the position he held from 1980 until his death.
Judge Howard was an Arkansas legal pioneer. In 1954, he became one of the first black graduates from the School of Law at the University of Arkansas. For much of the next twenty-five years, Judge Howard practiced law in Pine Bluff and journeyed into courtrooms throughout Arkansas to valiantly represent persons who were striving to overcome economic, racial, and social injustice. He was the first person of color appointed to the Arkansas Claims Commission where he served for seven years, including four years as its Chairman. From 1966 to 1970, Judge Howard served as a member and eventually became Chairman of the Arkansas Advisory Committee to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. Judge Howard was also the first person of color to serve on the Arkansas Supreme Court, the Arkansas Court of Appeals, and as a United States District Judge in Arkansas.
The judges and staff of the Arkansas Court of Appeals extend our profound sympathy to Judge Howard's widow, the former Vivian Smith, to whom he was devotedly married for sixty years; to his four children; and to other members of his family.