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[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 316 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 316

 Honoring Senior Judge Daniel H. Thomas of the United States District 
              Court for the Southern District of Alabama.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2000

   Mr. Sessions (for himself and Mr. Shelby) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
 Honoring Senior Judge Daniel H. Thomas of the United States District 
              Court for the Southern District of Alabama.

Whereas Daniel H. Thomas devoted his life to the dedicated and principled 
        service of his country, his State, and his community;
Whereas Daniel H. Thomas, a native of Prattville, Alabama, was born August 25, 
        1906, to Judge C.E. Thomas and Augusta Pratt.
Whereas Daniel H. Thomas obtained his law degree from the University of Alabama 
        in 1928, where his uncle, Daniel H. Pratt, served as President pro tem 
        of the Board of Trustees of the University;
Whereas Daniel H. Thomas, having served his country with distinction for 3 years 
        as a Navy Lieutenant during World War II, returned to Mobile, Alabama 
        and continued in the practice of law with Mr. Joseph C. Lyons and Sam 
        Pipes in the law firm of Lyons, Thomas and Pipes until he was elevated 
        to the Federal bench;
Whereas Daniel H. Thomas was appointed a United States District Judge for the 
        Southern District of Alabama by President Truman in 1951, joining in 
        distinguished judicial service his father, C.E. Thomas, who was a 
        probate judge of Augusta County, Alabama, his uncle, William Thomas, who 
        served the State of Alabama as a Supreme Court Justice, and his uncle, 
        J. Render Thomas, who served many years as the Clerk of the Supreme 
        Court of Alabama;
Whereas 49 years of judicial service made Judge Thomas one of the longest 
        serving Federal judges in American history;
Whereas the years of distinguished judicial service by Judge Thomas were 
        characterized by unflinching integrity and unquestioned legal ability;
Whereas in a time of great political and social turmoil, Judge Thomas inspired 
        continued respect for the rule of law established under the Constitution 
        of the United States, and for the propositions that ``all men are 
        created equal'' and deserve ``equal protection of the laws'' by 
        faithfully adhering to the precedents of the United States Supreme 
        Court, even when such actions were not popular;
Whereas the depth of legal scholarship exhibited by Judge Thomas led him to 
        become one of the most respected experts in the nation in the important 
        field of Admiralty Law;
Whereas the reach of service by Judge Thomas to his country extended beyond his 
        courtroom to his community through his active leadership as a founding 
        trustee of the Ashland Place Methodist Church in Mobile, Alabama, and to 
        America's youth through his efforts in support of the Boy Scouts of 
        America;
Whereas Judge Thomas, a man who enjoyed the outdoors, being an accomplished 
        fisherman and quail hunter, exhibited great common sense, had a vibrant 
        sense of humor, and was extremely friendly and thoughtful of others, 
        thereby truly fitting the description of a true ``southern gentleman'';
Whereas Judge Thomas truly was a great judge whose life was the law, and who was 
        loved and respected by members of the bar and community to a degree 
        seldom reached and never surpassed;
Whereas Judge Thomas passed away at his home in Mobile, Alabama, on Thursday, 
        April 13, 2000;
Whereas the members of the Senate extend our deepest sympathies to the wife of 
        Judge Thomas, Catherine Miller Thomas, his 2 sons, Daniel H. Thomas, Jr. 
        and Merrill P. Thomas, other family members, and a host of friends that 
        he had across the country; and
Whereas in the example of Judge Daniel H. Thomas, the American people have an 
        enduring symbol of moral courage, judicial restraint, and public 
        service: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate honors the memory of Judge Daniel H. 
Thomas for his exemplary service to his country; and
    Sec. 2. The Secretary of the Senate is directed to transmit a copy 
of this resolution to the family of the deceased.
                                 <all>
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