Josephine L. Hart

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Josephine L. Hart
Associate Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court
In office
January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2020
Preceded byJames H. Gunter, Jr.[1]
Succeeded byBarbara Womack Webb
Judge of the Arkansas Court of Appeals
In office
1999 – December 31, 2012
Personal details
Born (1943-11-20) November 20, 1943 (age 80)
Army Judge Advocate General Corps
Battles/warsVietnam War

Josephine Linker Hart (born November 20, 1943, in Perryville, Arkansas)[2] is an American lawyer and jurist who was an associate justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court from 2012 to 2020.

Early life

Hart was born in her grandmother's home in Perryville. At a few days old her family relocated to her father's farm in Russellville. Hart decided at a young age to follow a career in law. A personal family matter is what spurred her to this decision. Hart's family lived off of the farm until her family's fertile farmland was proposed to be taken by eminent domain to build Lake Dardanelle.[4] In 1965 Hart received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Arkansas Tech University.

Career

Military service

After graduating from college, Hart joined the United States Army and was deployed to Army Headquarters in Japan in 1966. She then was sent to Vietnam at the height of the Vietnam War. Hart was made an administrative chief of a unit comprising 500 people. Hart sorted all correspondence that went through the area, including the leaflets that were dropped over Vietnam. In Vietnam she was promoted to the position of Captain, and for a majority of Hart's time in Vietnam she was the only officer that was female.[2] Hart is quoted as saying about her time in Vietnam, “I was a junior captain in a senior major’s spot, and it had never been filled by a woman before,” but I never had any problems with it. It was a seven-days-a-week, 24-hours-a-day operation, and you just did your job.”[2] In 1969, Hart transitioned from her position in Vietnam to the Army Reserve, by this time she was Colonel and had served for 20 years.

Legal practice

After arriving back in Arkansas she went to the

University of Arkansas Law School, Hart was offered a position as a Law Clerk for Arkansas Supreme Court Justice Frank Holt, which she accepted. Generally, law clerk positions are for only one year, but due to Hart's hard work and skill at the job, she was asked to stay on for an additional two years, which she did.[2] After her work as a law clerk she decided to return to Batesville. She is quoted as saying, "I wanted to be of service to the people."[2]
Hart entered into private law and represented individuals and families whose land was being condemned or taken away.

Judicial career

After working in private law for 20 years Hart decided to enter the realm of politics and run for the

Courtney Hudson Goodson, Karen R. Baker, and Rhonda K. Wood.[6]

Judicial controversies

In 2018, the Arkansas Judicial Discipline and Disciplinary Commission (AJDDC) filed an ethical misconduct complaint against the Arkansas Supreme Court, including Josephine Hart. The charges were brought up after a complaint was filed by Wendell Griffen, a Pulaski county judge, in 2017.[5] Griffen alleges that the Arkansas Supreme Court did not give him ample enough time to respond to a ruling that stripped away his ability to decide capital punishment cases. Griffen had filed an injunction in April 2017 that stopped the deaths of seven death row inmates. Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge appealed to the Arkansas Supreme Court to reverse the decision, and remove Griffen from the case. The clerks notified Griffen and gave him two days to respond, which he did not do. The AJDDC claims this was not enough time. The case is still in litigation.[5]

Publications

Josephine Linker, Casenote, Taxation—Capital Gains—Exchange of “Like Kind” Property, 24 Ark. L. Rev. 142 (1970).[7]

Judge Josephine Linker Hart & Guilford M. Dudley, Available Post-Trial Relief After a State Criminal Conviction When Newly Discovered Evidence Establishes “Actual Innocence,” 22 U. Ark. Little Rock L. Rev. 629 (2000).[7]

Judge Josephine Linker Hart & Guilford M. Dudley, The Unpublished Rules of the Arkansas Court of Appeals: The Internal Rules and Procedures of the Arkansas Court of Appeals, 33 U. Ark. Little Rock L. Rev. 109 (2011).[7]

References

  1. ^ Gunter Bio
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Childhood encounter with law influenced judge's career". Arkansas Online. 2012-11-11. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
  3. ^
    ISBN 9780931398582
    .
  4. ^ a b "Ladies Of The Court: Meet The Three Female Justices Of The Arkansas Supreme Court". Talk Business & Politics. 2013-07-16. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
  5. ^ a b c "Josephine Hart". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
  6. ^ "Supreme Court Justice | Arkansas Judiciary". AR Courts. 2016. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c "Associate Justice Josephine L. Hart Position 4". Ar Courts. 2016. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
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