Richard J. Hughes
Richard J. Hughes | |
---|---|
Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court | |
In office December 18, 1973 – August 10, 1979 | |
Appointed by | William T. Cahill |
Preceded by | Pierre P. Garven |
Succeeded by | Robert N. Wilentz |
45th Governor of New Jersey | |
In office January 16, 1962 – January 20, 1970 | |
Preceded by | Robert B. Meyner |
Succeeded by | William T. Cahill |
Personal details | |
Born | Richard Joseph Hughes August 10, 1909 Florence Township, New Jersey, U.S. |
Died | December 7, 1992 Boca Raton, Florida, U.S. | (aged 83)
Political party | Democratic |
Spouses | Miriam McGrory
(m. 1935; died 1950)Elizabeth Sullivan Murphy
(m. 1954; died 1983) |
Children | 10 |
Education | Saint Joseph's University (BA) Rutgers University, Newark (LLB) |
Richard Joseph Hughes (August 10, 1909 – December 7, 1992) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. A
Early life and education
Hughes was born into an Irish-American family on August 10, 1909, in Florence Township, New Jersey.[4] He was the son of Richard Paul and Veronica Hughes (née Gallagher). His father was active in Democratic politics, serving as a state civil service commissioner, warden (then known as "principal keeper") of Trenton State Prison, now called New Jersey State Prison, and chair of the Burlington County Democratic Party. Hughes graduated from Cathedral High School in Trenton, Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia and the New Jersey Law School, now Rutgers Law School.[2]
Lawyer and state judge
Hughes was
In December 1939, Hughes became a federal
In 1948, Hughes was appointed by acting Governor
Hughes was considered by Governor
Governor, 1962–1970
Hughes was little known at the time he ran for
One of the important issues of Hughes' term as governor was state taxation; at the time Hughes took office in 1962, "New Jersey was one of only a handful of states that had neither an
With the backing of
Hughes was a delegate to three
Many credit the fact that then-President Lyndon B. Johnson had a very close friendship with Hughes, as one reason that Atlantic City hosted the 1964 Democratic National Convention.[6]
Hughes was one of three final candidates considered by vice president and presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey to be the Democratic Party's nominee for Vice President of the United States in 1968.[7]
Chief justice, 1973–1979
After serving as governor from 1962 to 1970, he served as the chief justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1973 to 1979, having been nominated for the post by his successor,
Later life
Hughes left the Supreme Court in 1979 after reaching the
Legacy
The building in Trenton, New Jersey which bears his name that houses the
Personal life
Hughes had five sons, two daughters, and three stepsons. He married Miriam McGrory in 1935; they had four children. His first wife died in 1950; in 1955, he married Elizabeth Sullivan Murphy (died 1983), and they had three children.
Several of his children have become prominent in New Jersey law and politics. Hughes' stepson W. Michael Murphy Jr., a former
References
- ^ "The United States Attorney's Office: District of New Jersey – A Rich History of Public Service". Archived from the original on December 30, 2008. Retrieved July 18, 2006.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Sullivan, Joseph F. (December 8, 1992). "Richard J. Hughes, Governor and Judge, Dies at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved March 26, 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Stanley B. Winters, Governor Richard Hughes – Biography, The Governors of New Jersey: Biographical Essays (Reuters University Press, 2014): eds. Michael J. Birkner, Donald Linky & Peter Mickulas.
- ^ a b c LeDuc, Daniel (December 8, 1992). "Ex-gov. Richard J. Hughes Dies". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on August 19, 2014.
- ^ "Ex-Judge Takes Lead in Democratic Race". The Courier-News (Bridgewater, New Jersey). Associated Press. February 10, 1961. p. 1. Retrieved October 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Jaffe, Herb (January 25, 1973). "Tearful Hughes Mourns a Great Patriot". The Star-Ledger. p. 8.
- ^ White, Theodore H. (1969). The Making of the President 1968. New York: Atheneum Publishers. p. 355.
- ^ Schwaneberg, Robert (December 29, 2005). "A critical choice for Corzine: Naming chief justice–Poritz's mandatory retirement creates several scenarios for powerful post". The Star-Ledger.
In October 1973, Chief Justice Pierre Garven, a Republican, died after less than two months in the post. Then-Gov. William T. Cahill was a lame duck, having been dumped by the Republican Party in the primary. Democrats won both the governor's office and control of the Senate in the November election. Cahill nominated his Democratic predecessor, Richard J. Hughes, who had been a judge before becoming governor.
- ^ Web page of the Office of the Attorney General, New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety. Accessed November 22, 2006.
- ^ "How Joe Biden, Sheryl Sandberg, and Prince Harry Turned Their Personal Grief into Public Lessons in…". April 17, 2018.
- ^ a b Burt A. Folkart, Richard J. Hughes; Justice Wrote Decision in Quinlan Case, Los Angeles Times (December 8, 1992).
- ^ a b Barbara G. Salmore, New Jersey Politics and Government: The Suburbs Come of Age (Rutgers University Press: 4th ed. 2013), p. 64.
- ^ Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman, County Executive Brian Hughes resting after cardiac surgery, Trentonian (December 15, 2008).
Further reading
- Wefing, John B. (2009). The Life and Times of Richard J. Hughes: The Politics of Civility. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rivergate Books/Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0813546419.
Archival collections
- Richard J. Hughes papers (The Monsignor Field Archives & Special Collection Center at Seton Hall University) - Contains the professional and personal papers of Richard J. Hughes covering his time as Governor of New Jersey to his tenure as Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, primarily from the 1960s-1970s