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Claude Harris Jr. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Attorney for theNorthern District of Alabama | |
| In office October 4, 1993 – October 2, 1994 | |
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Jack Selden |
| Succeeded by | Doug Jones |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromAlabama's7th district | |
| In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1993 | |
| Preceded by | Richard Shelby |
| Succeeded by | Earl Hilliard |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1940-06-29)June 29, 1940 |
| Died | October 2, 1994(1994-10-02) (aged 54) Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Barbara |
| Education | University of Alabama at Birmingham (BS) University of Alabama School of Law (JD) |
Claude Harris Jr. (June 29, 1940 – October 2, 1994) was an American politician.
ADemocrat fromAlabama, he served in theUnited States House of Representatives from 1987 until 1993. He was succeeded in the House byEarl F. Hilliard.[1]
Born inBessemer, Alabama, Harris earned his B.S. at theUniversity of Alabama in 1962, graduated fromUniversity of Alabama Law School in 1965 and served in theAlabama Army National Guard. He was an assistant district attorney inTuscaloosa County until 1977 when he took seat as astate circuit judge. He stepped down from the bench in 1985 to run for Congress to succeedRichard Shelby, who ran for theUnited States Senate. Harris was elected three times in 1986, 1988, and 1990. He declined to run for reelection in 1992 after the legislaturereconfigured his district into amajority-minority district in compliance with provisions in theVoting Rights Act, having little chance of being elected in the new district.
Harris voted for theAbandoned Shipwrecks Act of 1987.[2] The Act asserts United States title to certain abandoned shipwrecks located on or embedded in submerged lands under state jurisdiction, and transfers title to the respective state, thereby empowering states to manage these cultural and historical resources more efficiently, with the goal of preventingtreasure hunters and salvagers from damaging them. PresidentRonald Reagan signed it into law on April 28, 1988.[3]
After leavingCongress, Harris was appointedUnited States Attorney for theNorthern District of Alabama under the newClinton administration in 1993. Harris died oflung cancer on October 2, 1994, inBirmingham, Alabama.[4]
He was married to Barbara Harris; they had two sons.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromAlabama's 7th congressional district 1987–1993 | Succeeded by |
 | This article about an Alabama politician is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |
 | This biography of a state judge in Alabama is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |
