Elmer Gertz
Elmer Gertz (September 14, 1906 – April 27, 2000) was an American lawyer, writer, law professor, and
He is best remembered in the legal world, however, for a case in which he was not an advocate but a plaintiff:
Early life
A Jew of Lithuanian descent, Gertz was born to Morris and Grace Gertz in Chicago's Maxwell Street neighborhood. He attended elementary school with future Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg.[10] At the age of ten, his mother dead and his father unable to care for his children, he spent the remainder of his childhood in orphanages in Chicago and Cleveland.[11]
Education
He graduated from
He remained involved in education throughout his life, teaching a civil rights class at The
Legal career
As a law student, Gertz had been inspired by
He and Miller became good friends after he persuaded a court to lift the ban on Tropic of Cancer, a decision the Supreme Court upheld in 1964's Grove Press, Inc., v. Gerstein.
In the mid-1960s, Gertz emulated his legal inspiration, Clarence Darrow, when he argued against the death sentence handed down to Jack Ruby for killing Lee Harvey Oswald. It was overturned, and Ruby, who was terminally ill, served the remaining few years of his life in prison.
Educator
In addition to his law practice, Elmer Gertz was an adjunct professor teaching Civil Rights Law at
Libel suit against John Birch Society
In 1969, Elmer Gertz represented the family of a young man killed by a Chicago police officer. This drew the ire of the John Birch Society, which alleged in an article about the case in its magazine, American Opinion, that he had a criminal record and was part of a Communist conspiracy to discredit local police departments in order to pave the way for Communist control by a national police force.
He sued the Society for
The case went back to a six-day trial where Gertz once again prevailed and was awarded $100,000 in compensatory damages and $300,000 in punitive damages.[17] The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the award and the U.S. Supreme Court declined further review.[18]
A few years later, Gertz and his wife went on a round-the-world, luxury cruise with the money he won and sent "wish you were here" postcards back to Welch and his organization every chance they got.[19]
Political and social activism
In the 1940s, he was active in the fair housing movement, serving on several public bodies devoted to the subject. He presciently warned against the creation of large
In 1969, he was elected to the Illinois Constitutional Convention, where he chaired the committee on its Bill of Rights,[21] working closely with the committee's legal counsel, Dallin H. Oaks. It has been called the strongest bill of rights of any state constitution at that point in time. A decade later, he chaired the equivalent committees of the Illinois and Chicago bar associations. He also served as chairman of the Lawyers' Association. After his death, the Illinois State Bar Association created the Elmer Gertz Lawyer Award in 2000 to recognize lawyers for their exceptional dedication to protecting civil liberties.[22]
Elmer Gertz received Israel's Prime Minister's Medal in 1972 for his service on that country's behalf, and considered that his finest accomplishment.[23]
"Things do change for the better," he assured some students near the end of his life, "very, very slowly."
Elmer Gertz Lawyer Award
The Illinois State Bar Association established the Elmer Gertz Lawyer Award in 2000 to recognize lawyers who have shown a continued commitment to preserve and advance human rights.[24] For many years the award was jointly presented with the Blind Service Association, where Elmer Gertz was a board member.[25] The award has been given to the following persons or entities:
- 2001 - Gregory A. Adamski
- 2002 - Prof. Ralph Ruebner, The John Marshall Law School (Chicago)
- 2003 - Prof. Victor J. Stone, University of Illinois College of Law
- 2004 - Fay Clayton, Chicago
- 2005 - Award not given
- 2006 - Prof. Michael P. Seng, The John Marshall Law School (Chicago)
- 2007 - R. Eugene Pincham, Retired Justice, Illinois Appellate Court
- 2008 - Prof. Doug Cassel, Notre Dame University School of Law
- 2009 - Award not given
- 2010 - Award not given
- 2011 - Award not given
- 2012 - Judge Martha A. Mills, Cook County Circuit Court
- 2013 - Jody Raphael, Schiller DuCanto & Fleck Family Law Center, DePaul University College of Law (Chicago)
- 2014 - Barbara Blaine[26]
Bibliography
- The Best is Yet To Be
- Carl Sandburg: Is He the Poet of The People? 1946
- Charter for a New Age: Inside the Sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention, 1980
- The Diary of a Public Man, 1945
- For the First Hours of Tomorrow: The New Illinois Bill of Rights, 1972
- Gertz v. Robert Welch: The Story of the Landmark Libel Case, 1992
- Frank Harris and Henry Miller: Two Lives Intertwined With Mine
- A Handful of Clients
- Moment of Madness: The People vs. Jack Ruby, 1968
- Reflections on Henry Miller's Centennial Celebration
- Odyssey of a Barbarian: The Biography of George Sylvester Viereck, 1979
- Quest for a Constitution: A Man Who Wouldn't Quit, 1984
- To Life: The Story of A Chicago Lawyer, 1990
See also
Ronald K.L. Collins & Sam Chaltain, We Must not be Afraid to be Free: Stories of Free Expression in America (Oxford U. Press, 2011)
References
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ 418 U.S. 323 (1974).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 418 U.S. 323 (1974).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 680 F.2d 527 (7th Cir. 1982); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 418 U.S. 323 (1974).
- ^ Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Gertz v. Robert Welch, 680 F.2d 527 (7th Cir. 1982); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ ; Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights); Mark E. Wojcik, "The Elmer Gertz Award," Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 2, at 6 (Dec. 2013)(Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ Thomas Bruno, Elmer Gertz Award, Human Rights, vol. 40, no. 1, at 7 (Newsletter of the Illinois State Bar Association Section on Human Rights).
- ^ "IllinoisLawyerFinder | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2019-07-24.
- Adiya, Sarbani; February 2001. Elmer Gertz: A Chicago Legal Legend. Illinois History.
- Tilt, Max; date unknown, Elmer Gertz Archived 2006-02-14 at the Wayback Machine. Legal Tilt 1.03.
External links
- Elmer Gertz papers, Library of Congress, Manuscript Division
- Visual materials from the Elmer Gertz papers, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
- Plain Speaking: Elmer Gertz Remembers Harry Truman from American Legends.
- Save Maxwell St. Letter by Gertz urging preservation of Maxwell Street.
- Henry Miller Remembered A further fragment of the American Legends interview.