Obituaries
Judge Barefoot Sanders, Civil Rights Icon, Dies at Age 83
Posted Sep 22, 2008 6:06 AM CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
A “larger than life” federal judge who oversaw desegregation of Dallas schools has died at the age of 83.
U.S. District Judge Barefoot Sanders died Sunday at his Dallas home after battling an infection, the Dallas Morning News reports.
He once identified the highlight of his career as helping pass the Voting Rights Act when he was an assistant attorney general in the U.S. Justice Department. He also served three terms in the Texas legislature and was U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas. He was appointed to the bench by President Jimmy Carter in 1979 and retired in 2006.
U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle told the newspaper that Sanders was “truly larger than life."
"From the core, he symbolized civil rights,” she said. “He knew that fairness took backbone, and that's why he was able to make history."
"If you close your eyes, and you knew him and you loved him, you'll be able to smell that cigar smoke," she added. "And it'll make you smile."
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Comments
Jim Cornehls
Sep 22, 2008 10:36 AM CST
Judge Sanders was more than a civil rights icon. He epitomized what a federal judge should be. He was not pompous or arrogant, was actually willing to talk to attorneys who practiced in his court, always tried to make a decisions that were fair, not just procedurally correct, and permitted lawyers to manage their own cases, rather than have them managed by court clerks. He was a gentleman in the true sense of that word. The great pity is that more recently appointed federal judges cannnot or will not emulate his style, If they did, federal practice would become once again much more pleasant and enjoyable. Judge Sanders will be missed by many older lawyers who had the pleasure of enjoying his wit, good cheer, and infinite quest for fairness under the law.
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