Allen Edgar Broussard | |
|---|---|
| Associate Justice of theCalifornia Supreme Court | |
| In office July 22, 1981 – August 31, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | William P. Clark Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Ronald M. George |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Allen Edgar Broussard (1929-04-13)April 13, 1929 Lake Charles,Louisiana, U.S. |
| Died | November 5, 1996(1996-11-05) (aged 67) Oakland,California, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | San Francisco City College University of California, Berkeley (B.A.,J.D) |
| Occupation | Lawyer, judge, civic leader |
Allen Edgar Broussard (April 13, 1929 – November 5, 1996) was an American attorney who rose to become an associate justice of theCalifornia Supreme Court from July 22, 1981, to August 31, 1991.
Broussard was born inLake Charles,Louisiana, the son of Clemire and Eugenia Broussard (née Rochon),[1][2] who wereRoman Catholics[3] ofCreole ancestry.[4] At the age of sixteen, he moved with his working class family toCalifornia, where his father was alongshoreman, and his mother worked as aseamstress.[5]
As a young man, Broussard held various part-time jobs, including selling shoes and working in a canning plant. He financed his own education, first atSan Francisco City College, then theUniversity of California at Berkeley, and theUniversity of California, Berkeley School of Law.[1][6] At Boalt, he was vice-president of the Boalt Hall Law Students Association and a contributor to theCalifornia Law Review.
After graduating in 1953, he served in theUnited States Army for two years.[7] After completing Basic Army Administration school as a clerk typist, he became achaplain's assistant in Germany, where he served for 19 months. After leaving the Army, he became the research attorney forRaymond E. Peters, Presiding Justice of theCalifornia Court of Appeal, First District, Division One. In 1959, Broussard entered private practice with Wilson, Metoyer & Sweeny.[8][9]
Broussard was one of a group of influential African American leaders in East Bay politics, including Norvel Smith, and stateCourt of Appeal Justice Clinton White.[10] He was part of acoterie that used to meet at thepharmacy ofWilliam Byron Rumford, along withLionel Wilson. In 1972, Broussard was the first African American to be elected president of the California Judges Association.[11] He also became chairman of the Board of the Center for Judicial Education and Research.[12]
Broussard was one of the firstAfrican Americans to become a judge in California. In 1964,California GovernorEdmund G. "Pat" Brown appointed Broussard as a judge of theMunicipal Court for the Oakland-Piedmont (later Oakland-Piedmont-Emeryville) Judicial District.[13] His record caught the attention ofDemocratic governorJerry Brown, who, in 1975, appointed Broussard as a judge of theAlameda County Superior Court.[14] He went on to serve as Presiding Judge of the Superior Court. In 1981 Governor Jerry Brown elevated Broussard to the California Supreme Court, where he served as Associate Justice until 1991.[15] His term followedWiley Manuel, who was on the bench 1977–1981.
On the court, Broussard was a leading liberal in the court's majority, along with Chief JusticeRose Bird.[1][16] He wrote the majority of opinions for the court at that time.[17] By 1982, five of the seven justices on the court were Brown appointees, who were widely criticized as allegedly soft on crime and overly political. Even though the judges had somewhat different individual philosophies, they were lumped together by conservative politicians who derisively labeled them as "Jerry's Judges" and "Rosie & The Supremes." Critics repeatedly claimed that Broussard and other Brown appointees ruled on the basis of personal opinion and political bias rather than the law and the state Constitution.[11]
In 1982, Broussard was up for election reconfirmation.[18] A campaign was waged against him and the other Brown appointees on the ballot that year (Cruz Reynoso andOtto Kaus), something that was unprecedented in California history.[19] Broussard was reconfirmed to a 12-year term, as expected, with 56% of the vote, but that was below the typical confirmation vote.[20] In 1986, three of his colleagues (Bird, Cruz Reynoso, andJoseph Grodin) were resoundingly voted off the court, and they were replaced by conservative justices.[21] Broussard was disturbed by this development and expressed fear that the judiciary would become politicized.
On August 31, 1991, Broussard retired from the court and GovernorPete Wilson appointedRonald M. George to the seat.[1][22]
After retiring from thejudiciary, Broussard served on theOakland Port Commission, which involved visiting ports around the world, especially Asia. In 1987, he led a group of 72 lawyers, port officials including: port commissionerCarole Ward Allen, and city officials on a 3-week long trip toChina meetingJiang Zemin, the mayor ofShanghai. Shanghai is a "twin city" ofSan Francisco.
As chairman of a civic organization calledMen of Tomorrow, he contacted Odessa Monroe, the program director of the radio stationKSAN, seeking free air time. He went on to marry her in 1959, and they had two sons, Keith and Craig.[11]
Hon. Allen E. Broussard, 1981-87
Two black judges were elected to state supreme courts: Oscar Adams in Alabama and Allen Broussard in California.
1982 judicial election...Allen Broussard with 56.2%
The court...ruled in the final week of office for Chief Justice Rose Bird and Associate Justices Cruz Reynoso and Joseph Grodin, who suffered a resounding defeat in last month's confirmation election and will leave office Sunday.
| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Associate Justice of theCalifornia Supreme Court 1981–1991 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
