James M. Burns | |
---|---|
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon | |
In office November 24, 1989 – December 21, 2001 | |
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon | |
In office 1979–1984 | |
Preceded by | Otto Richard Skopil Jr. |
Succeeded by | Owen M. Panner |
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon | |
In office June 2, 1972 – November 24, 1989 | |
Appointed by | Richard Nixon |
Preceded by | Gus J. Solomon |
Succeeded by | Robert E. Jones |
Personal details | |
Born | James Milton Burns November 24, 1924 Portland, Oregon |
Died | December 21, 2001 Wilsonville, Oregon | (aged 77)
Education |
University of Portland (
B.A.) Loyola University Chicago School of Law ( J.D.) |
James Milton Burns (November 24, 1924 – December 21, 2001) was an American attorney and judge in Oregon. He served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon.
Burns was born in Portland, Oregon, on November 24, 1924, [1] and was raised by an aunt after both of his parents had died by the time he was ten years old. [2] After high school at Grant High School he earned scholarship to attend the University of Portland, [3] but left part way through to serve as infantry in the United States Army during World War II from 1943 to 1945. [1] While serving in France he suffered trenchfoot. [3] After leaving the Army he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Portland in 1947 and then a Juris Doctor from Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 1950. [1] While at Loyola he met Helen Hogan in 1950, and the two were married in November 1950 and had five daughters, two of which became attorneys. [3]
Burns was in private practice in Portland from 1950 to 1952, and again from 1956 to 1966, serving in the interim as a district attorney of Harney County, in Eastern Oregon. [1] He was also a Special Master for the United States District Court for the District of Oregon from 1962 to 1965. [1] He was a judge of the Oregon Circuit Court for Multnomah County from 1966 to 1972, becoming a member of the faculty of the National Judicial College in 1971. [1]
On March 22, 1972, Burns was nominated by President Richard Nixon to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Oregon vacated by Judge Gus J. Solomon. [1] Burns was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 25, 1972, and received his commission on June 2, 1972. [1] He served as Chief Judge from 1979 to 1984 before he assumed senior status on November 24, 1989. [1]
Notable cases Burns heard included where he tossed approval for the Mount Hood Freeway in 1974, a criminal case related to the 1982 escape of prisoners from Rocky Butte Jail, and the 1987 case over construction of the Elk Creek Dam in Southern Oregon. [2]
At the time he took senior status he lived along the Willamette River in Wilsonville, Oregon, in the Portland metropolitan area with his wife Helen. [3] Burns died on December 21, 2001, in Wilsonville at the age of 77. [2] He was buried at Portland's Mount Calvary Cemetery. [2]