Ronald Davies (judge)

Ronald Norwood Davies (December 11, 1904 - April 18, 1996) was a federal judge for the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota (July 22, 1955 - 1996). Davies is perhaps best known for ordering the integration of Little Rock Central High during the civil rights crisis of the 1960s.

Biography

Early life

Ronald Norwood Davies was born on December 11, 1904, in Crookston, Minnesota. ["Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,891332,00.html "I'm Just One of a Couple of Hundred".] Monday, Sep. 30, 1957.] He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Liberal Arts at the University of North Dakota in 1927 and a law degree from Georgetown University Law School in 1930.The Federal Judicial Center. " [http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=568 Davies, Ronald Norwood.] "]

He practiced law in Grand Forks, North Dakota for several years, before becoming a judge at the Municipal Court of Grand Forks (1932-1940). In 1940, Davies and fellow Grand Forks lawyer Charles F. Peterson formed a private law practice. During World War II, Davies served as First Lieutenant in the United States Army. After the war, Davies went back to his private practice. In June 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower nominated Davies as U.S. District Court Judge of North Dakota. He was confirmed on July 22, 1955.The Federal Judicial Center. " [http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=568 Davies, Ronald Norwood.] "]

Little Rock

Davies is perhaps best known for challenging Orval Faubus, the Governor of Arkansas, in 1957, during the Little Rock Nine crisis. Judge Davies had been temporarily assigned to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas in Little Rock, the state capital of Arkansas, by President Dwight Eisenhower on August 22, 1957. [ Craig Rains. [http://www.centralhigh57.org/1957-58.htm Little Rock Central High 40th Anniversity.] ]

The U.S. Supreme Court issued its Brown v. Topeka Board of Education decision (347 U.S. 483) in on May 17, 1954. The decision called for the desegregation of all schools in the nation with "all deliberate speed". The Little Rock School Board unanimously decided to comply with the high court's ruling and agreed to a gradual desegregation plan, which would be implemented in the 1958 school year. [ Warren, Earl. Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Cornell Law School. [http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0347_0483_ZO.html Brown v. Topeka Board of Education.] ]

By 1957, the NAACP had registered nine black students to attend the previously all-white Little Rock Central High. Meanwhile, the "Mother's League", a segregationist parents group, requested an injunction against the Little Rock School Board. The injunction would prevent the nine students from attending the school. Segregationist parents also threatened to protest in front of the high school and physically block any black students from entering the school. The Chancellor of Pulaski County, Murray Reed, granted the injunction on August 27, 1956, "on the grounds that integration could lead to violence." Judge Davies nullified the injunction on August 30 and ordered the School Board to proceed with integration on September 3."Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,893684,00.html "Retreat from Newport".] Monday, Sep. 23, 1957.]

Despite the federal court's ruling, Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas National Guard to the school under the pretense of maintaining civil order. The nine black students attempted to enter Central High on September 4, 1957, but were turned away by the guardsmen. The deployment of the guardsmen brought national attention to Little Rock. President Eisenhower called Governor Faubus to his vacation home in Newport, Rhode Island on September 14, 1957 and warned him not to interfere with the Supreme Court's ruling. [Front Pages of the Arkansas Democrat and Arkansas Gazette. [http://www.ardemgaz.com/prev/central/ Little Rock 1957.] ] "Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,893684,00.html "Retreat from Newport".] Monday, Sep. 23, 1957.]

Attorneys from the U.S. Justice Department requested an injunction against the Governor's deployment of the National Guard, which Judge Davies granted on September 20, 1957. Davies ruled that Faubus had used the troops to prevent integration, not to preserve law and order as he had claimed. Davies ordered the Governor to remove the guardsmen. The Governor backed down and withdrew the guardsmen during the weekend. Afterwards the Little Rock Police Department attempted to sneak the nine students into the school on Monday, September 23, 1957. However, the nine were escorted out when angry parents of white students inside begin confronting the outnumbered police. ["Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,891331,00.html "Case No. 3113".] Monday, Sep. 30, 1957.]

The next day, the mayor of Little Rock, Woodrow Mann, requested federal troops to enforce integration at Central High. President Eisenhower deployed the 101st Airborne Division to the school to escort the nine students and the division remained there for the remainder of the school year. The Mother's League petitioned Judge Davies to force the removal the federal troops on October 17, 1957, but he dismissed the petition.

Legacy

Judge Davies sat on the federal district court in Fargo, North Dakota for thirty years. Davies died on April 18, 1996 in Fargo.

He was a recipient of the state of North Dakota's Roughrider Award. The Ronald N. Davies Federal Building and US Courthouse [http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?P=PMHP&contentId=19425&contentType=GSA_BASIC] in Grand Forks, North Dakota is named in his memory.

Notes

References

* "Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,895063,00.html "Trail Blazers on the Bench."] Monday, Dec. 5, 1960.
* "Time Magazine". [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,891332,00.html "I'm Just One of a Couple of Hundred".] Monday, Sep. 30, 1957.
* Warner, Colleen A. "From Fargo to Little Rock: Federal Judge Ronald N. Davies and the Public School Desegregation Crisis of 1957." "Western Legal History." Volume 17, Number 1. Winter/Spring 2004. Pages 1-44.

External links

* [http://www.und.edu/dept/library/Collections/og1087.html Judge Ronald Davies papers at The University of North Dakota]
*Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry: [http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=418 Ronald Norwood Davies]