Jesse J. McCrary, Jr.

Jesse J. McCrary, Jr.

Jesse J. McCrary, Jr. (September 16, 1937 – October 29, 2007) was an American lawyer from the U.S. state of Florida. A civil rights activist, he entered state politics and served as Secretary of State of Florida, becoming the first black member of the Florida Cabinet since the end of Reconstruction.

Contents

Early life and education

McCrary was born in 1937 in Blitchton, Marion County, Florida, the son of a Baptist preacher. He attended Howard Academy in Ocala. There he was very active in sports, playing several sports. He was the quarterback of the school's championship football team. He was a political science major at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, where he was a civil rights activist, organizing sit-ins in Tallahassee. He was also on the debate team, a member of the drama club and an ROTC cadet. He did a stint in Army Intelligence before graduating from FAMU Law with his Juris Doctor in 1965.

Career

In 1967, McCrary became Florida's first assistant Attorney General. He dealt with criminal appeals and advised the state Racing Commission. Three years later, he became the first black lawyer to argue a case before the Supreme Court of the United States on behalf of a Southern state (the case was Williams v. State of Florida; the court decided in favor of the state, which was seeking to uphold a law allowing six-person juries in non-capital criminal cases).

In the 1970s, McCrary was a partner in the law firm of McCrary, Ferguson and Leethrough. He issued a report critical of Opa-locka's government and police department, was the Dade County School Board's first black attorney, and was appointed by the governor as a judge on the Florida Industrial Commission. At the time, he was Florida's highest-paid black official.

McCrary was appointed Secretary of State of Florida by Governor Reubin Askew in 1978 to finish the unexpired term of his predecessor, who had resigned to run for governor. As Secretary of State, he recommended judicial appointees to the governor. (Askew had also appointed Florida's first black Circuit Court judges.[1]

McCrary returned to private practice in 1979 and was active in the community in the 1980s and 1990s. He represented an embattled county commissioner in a public corruption scandal. He was part of the effort to have the board allow single-member districts. In 1991, he served as the unpaid chair of a local community services organization which he saved form bankruptcy. In 2000, he was appointed to the Board of Miami Children's Hospital.[2] In 2001, he was named to a commission that made recommendations to Senior Judge Lenore C. Nesbitt in a federal condemnationn suit brought by the National Park Service to acquire land for Everglades National Park. [3] In 2003, the Florida Legislature passed a resolution recognizing his work on ten landmark Florida Supreme Court cases.

He died of lung cancer.

Sources

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Jesse J. McCrary Jr. — Jesse J. McCrary (1937 2007) was a civil rights pioneer and the first African American Florida cabinet member since Reconstruction. He was appointed Florida Secretary of State by Governor Reubin Askew in 1978. Mr. NcCrary was born on September 16 …   Wikipedia

  • McCrary (surname) — McCrary is a Scottish surname, and may refer to: Jesse J. McCrary Jr. (1937 2007), former Florida Secretary of State Darius McCrary (born 1976), American actor Donny McCrary (born 1982), American professional boxer Donovan McCrary (born 1979),… …   Wikipedia

  • Reubin O'Donovan Askew — Infobox Governor name= Reubin O Donovan Askew order= 37th title=Governor of Florida term start= January 5, 1971 term end= January 2, 1979 lieutenant= Thomas Burton Adams, Jr. (1971 1975) J.H. Williams (1975 1979) predecessor= Claude Roy Kirk… …   Wikipedia

  • Liste der Biografien/Mc — Biografien: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Family Matters — infobox television show name = Family Matters caption = Family Matters title screen format = Sitcom runtime = 23 Minutes creator = William Bickley Michael Warren developer = Thomas L. Miller Robert L. Boyett executive producer = Thomas L. Miller… …   Wikipedia

  • Lucian Bute — Fiche d’identité Nom complet Lucian Bute Nationalité   …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Vampires: Los Muertos — DVD cover Directed by Tommy Lee Wallace Produced by …   Wikipedia

  • Curly Lambeau — Lambeau during his college career at Notre Dame in 1918. Date of birth April 9, 1898(1898 04 09) Place of birth Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S …   Wikipedia

  • Mike Michalske — Date of birth: April 24, 1903(1903 04 24) Place of birth: Cleveland, Ohio, United States Date of death: October 26, 1983, age 80 Career informatio …   Wikipedia

  • 2009 in film — The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the top 50 list of highest grossing films, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that as of this year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees,… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”