Garnett Thomas Eisele, (November 3, 1923 – November 26, 2017), better known as G. Thomas Eisele, was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas.

G. Thomas Eisele
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
In office
August 1, 1991 – November 26, 2017
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
In office
1975–1991
Preceded byJesse Smith Henley
Succeeded byStephen M. Reasoner
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
In office
August 6, 1970 – August 1, 1991
Appointed byRichard Nixon
Preceded byGordon Elmo Young
Succeeded byBilly Roy Wilson
Personal details
Born
Garnett Thomas Eisele

(1923-11-03)November 3, 1923
Hot Springs, Arkansas
DiedNovember 26, 2017(2017-11-26) (aged 94)
Little Rock, Arkansas
Residence(s)Little Rock, Arkansas
EducationWashington University in St. Louis (A.B.)
Harvard Law School (LL.B., LL.M.)

Education and career

edit

Born on November 3, 1923, in Hot Springs, Arkansas,[1] Eisele had attended several Republican National Conventions with his grandfather, Martin Eisele.[2]

He was a private in the United States Army during World War II from 1942 to 1946. In 1947, he procured a Bachelor of Arts degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. He then obtained both a Bachelor of Laws and a Master of Laws in 1950 and 1951 from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [citation needed]

From 1952 to 1961, Eisele was in the United States Naval Reserve. He was in private practice in Hot Springs from 1951 to 1953. He was an Assistant United States Attorney in the capital city of Little Rock from 1953 to 1955. After he was not nominated for United States Attorney, Eisele returned to private practice in Little Rock from 1956 to 1970.[citation needed]

In the early 1960s, Eisele supported Winthrop Rockefeller's attempt to revive the Arkansas Republican Party. At the time Rockefeller was engaged in an intra-party rivalry with state chairman William L. Spicer of Fort Smith, the owner of a chain of drive-in theaters. From 1966 to 1969, Eisele was the legal advisor to Rockefeller, who was elected governor in 1966–68.[3]

Federal judicial service

edit

Eisele was nominated by President Richard Nixon on January 23, 1970, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas vacated by Judge Gordon Elmo Young. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on August 5, 1970, and received his commission on August 6, 1970. He served as Chief Judge from 1975 to 1991. He assumed senior status on August 1, 1991.[3] His service terminated on November 26, 2017, due to his death in Little Rock.[4]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Finn, Marie T. (1995). The American Bench. Forster-Long. p. 195. ISBN 9780931398322.
  2. ^ Cobb, Osro; Griffee, Carol (1989-01-01). Osro Cobb of Arkansas. Little Rock, Ark: Osro Cobb. p. 131. ISBN 0-914546-81-3.
  3. ^ a b Garnett Thomas Eisele at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  4. ^ Brantley, Max (27 November 2017). "The open line: Also, retired Judge G. Thomas Eisele has died at 94".
edit
Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
1970–1991
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
1975–1991
Succeeded by