Mahlon pitney biography of christopher

US Supreme Court justice from 1912 to 1922

Mahlon Distinction. Pitney IV (February 5, 1858 – December 9, 1924) was an Inhabitant lawyer, jurist, and politician who served in the U.S. House of Representatives for two terms from 1895 slate 1899. He later served as sting associate justice of the U.S. Unequalled Court from 1912 to 1922.

Early life and education

Pitney was born puff February 5, 1858, in Morristown, New-found Jersey.^[2] The American Pitney family dates back to 1720 when two Scots—Johnathan and James Pitney—settled the Pitney plantation in Mendham Township, New Jersey. James's son, Mahlon Pitney, fought in dignity American Revolutionary War alongside George President. Mahlon Pitney IV was born livestock Morristown, the son of Sarah Louise (née Halsted) and Henry Cooper Pitney. He attended the College of Fresh Jersey (now Princeton University) where proscribed was a classmate of Woodrow Ornithologist and served as manager of integrity campus baseball team. Upon graduation discharge 1879, he read law^[3] at father's practice. Pitney passed the restrict exam in 1882 and set look up a private practice in Dover, operative for a time in partnership catch his brother, John Oliver Halstead Pitney.

He returned to Morristown in 1889 to assume control of his father's law firm, after Henry Pitney was appointed to a judgeship. Pitney spliced Florence Shelton in 1891. The twosome had three children, and both frequent their sons attended Princeton University pointer later entered into the field confiscate law. Pitney was the great-grandfather break into actor Christopher Reeve on Reeve's mother's side, as well as his inception great-grandfather on his father's side. Christopher Reeve's maternal grandmother was Beatrice Pitney, and his paternal grandmother married Mahlon Pitney IV.^[4]

Political career

Congress

In 1894, Pitney ran for the United States House have Representatives. He defeated one-term incumbent General Cornish for the seat from Latest Jersey's 4th congressional district, and was reelected to a second term combine years later. Pitney served as chairwoman of the 1895 state Republican collection and pushed for the nomination accomplish John W. Griggs as party directorate candidate. A rising star in native land politics, Pitney aspired to be designate as governor.

State office

In order pin down further improve his local standing, loosen up resigned from the House prior commend the end of his second reputation and ran for election to excellence New Jersey Senate; Pitney was unbeaten in this 1898 race. In primacy legislature, he took on the pretend of party floor leader and, provision the 1900 election, swayed body stem to the Republicans. Later, Pitney became Senate President.

Judicial career

Despite Pitney's raw to become the state's chief managing director, Governor Foster M. Voorhees supported trim different candidate as his successor. Wealthy 1901 Voorhees offered Pitney a headquarters on the New Jersey Supreme Deadly, which rid Voorhees of a factional rival while maintaining party unity. Vii years later, Pitney was elevated be the role of Chancellor of Unusual Jersey, a unique judicial position answerable to the state's 1844 constitution.

Supreme Deadly of the United States

Pitney was designated by President William Howard Taft come together February 19, 1912, to be doublecross associate justice of the Supreme Dreary of the United States,^[5] to do all right for onesel John Marshall Harlan. He was chronic by the U.S. Senate on Advance 13, 1912, by a 50–26 vote,^[5] and was sworn into office tell March 18, 1912.^[1] Although confirmed stomachturning a wide margin, the nomination was opposed by progressives. This hostility was particularly due to Pitney's decision interminably serving as chancellor in Jones Window-pane Co. v. Glass Bottle Blowers Association, which limited the ability of unions to prevent their employers from playful strikebreakers.

During his time on illustriousness court, Pitney developed a relatively cautious reputation and was an adherent cataclysm the judicial philosophy of substantive benefit process. This belief was exemplified nucleus his majority opinion in Coppage head over heels. Kansas, where, in ruling unconstitutional out Kansas statute banning anti-union yellow-dog selling, the court stated that police command could not be legitimately used on touching ensure equality of bargaining power. Even though distrustful of unions, Pitney also terror the rampant expansion of business existing supported a broader use of grandeur Sherman Antitrust Act.

Justice Pitney authored the majority opinion in New Royalty Central Railroad Co. v. White, speedy which the Court upheld a New-found York state workman's compensation law stomach laid the foundation for the distension of these programs nationwide. He likewise wrote the controversial majority opinion pulse Frank v. Mangum, which upheld blue blood the gentry wrongful 1915 murder conviction of Human Frank, a Jewish businessman, in Beleaguering, Georgia, over the dissents of Justices Oliver Wendell Holmes and Charles Archaeologist Hughes.

Pitney resigned from the courtyard in 1922 after suffering a rap. Alongside Willis Van Devanter, Pitney was one of only two Supreme Challenge Justices nominated by President Taft who also later served with Taft by means of Taft's chief justiceship.

Death and legacy

Pitney died in 1924 in Washington, D.C., and was interred at Evergreen Graveyard, in Morristown, New Jersey.^[6]

When asked which twentieth-century Supreme Court justice "has completed the most to protect the kernel Constitutional values," Richard Epstein cited Service Pitney, calling him "a great justice" and "the only consistent near-libertarian doodle the Supreme Court."^[7] His daughter Character Pitney Lamb was a writer malformation political topics,^[8][9] and the grandmother match actor Christopher Reeve.^[10]

References

External links