Robert N. C. Nix Jr.

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Personal life

Nix was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 1928.<ref name=NYTimes/> He was the son of Robert N. C. Nix Sr., the first of Pennsylvania's African American Representative in the United States Congress and a powerhouse among city Democrats.<ref name=":0" /> Nix's grandfather was Nelson Cornelius Nix, who was born into slavery but eventually became a minister and an academic dean of South Carolina State College at Orangeburg.<ref name="inmemoriam">In Memoriam - Robert N. C. Nix Jr.</ref><ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref>

Nix was a 1946 graduate of Central High School, where he graduated with the highest honors in his class;<ref name=PhilaInquirer>"Ex-Justice Robert Nix dead at 75", Philadelphia Inquirer, August 24, 2003.</ref><ref name=":2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> a 1950 graduate and valedictorian of Villanova University, where he received his A.B. degree;<ref name=NYTimes/> and a second-generation graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he received his Juris Doctor degree in 1953.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He was also a postgraduate of Temple University for Business Administration and Economics.<ref>Robert N. C. Nix Jr.: Biography and Much More from Answers.com</ref>

After graduating from law school, Nix spent 2 years serving in the United States Army before becoming a Deputy Attorney General in 1956.<ref name=PennObit>University of Pennsylvania Obituary, The Pennsylvania Gazette.</ref> After two years in the Attorney General's Office he joined his father's law firm, Nix, Rhodes and Nix, as a partner, where he gained a reputation as a civil rights advocate.<ref name=NYTimes/> During the 1960s, he represented United Neighbors, a citizens' group advocating improvements in a blighted section of West Philadelphia.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> He served as a member of the mayor's advisory committee on civil rights in 1963, where he raised questions about racial discrimination in city government hiring, and pushed for action against slumlords.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> Following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Nix commented that unless the nation made a commitment to racial equality, it faced "an internal conflagration that will reduce it to ashes."<ref name=PhilaInquirer/>

He also defended Philadelphia Magistrate Earl Lane in a 1966 case with political and racial overtones.<ref>"Philadelphia's Magisterial Mess", Time Magazine, October 1, 1965.</ref> Lane was accused of collecting $2 to $20 fees for signing copies of charges that released people accused of crimes, a procedure that was supposed to be free or, if bail was required, cost a dollar.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> Nix unsuccessfully sought a new judge and a change of venue for the trial, contending that Lane, a former Pullman porter and Democratic committeeman, had been unfairly singled out for prosecution on charges far more minor than those the other magistrates faced. After Lane was convicted and sentenced to 11 to 23 months in prison, Nix said Lane was "the first man in the history of the state charged with this crime" and that at least 19 other magistrates did the same thing but had not been charged.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/>

Nix served as a ward leader in Philadelphia while he was a lawyer.<ref name=":1" />

Judicial career

In 1967 Nix was elected as a judge on the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.<ref name=":0" /> He was appointed an associate justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court by Governor Milton Shapp in 1971, and was elected the following year.<ref>TRIBUTE: Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Chief Justice Nix: He will be Missed: A Great Loss, Roberts C. Powers, 13 Widener L.J. 563.</ref> He was the first African American elected to statewide office in Pennsylvania history.<ref name=NYTimes/><ref name=":0" /> Of his election, Justice Nix said: "[i]t shows that the people want ideas, that they are not interested in race, creed or color. I'm particularly impressed by the vote in the central counties. It is just unbelievable that a Philadelphia candidate won there. And a black man!"<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> He became chief justice in 1984, replacing former Chief Justice Samuel J. Roberts.<ref name=NYTimes/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He was the first African American state court Chief Justice in the United States.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> From 1991 to 1992 he served as President of the National Conference of Chief Justices.<ref name=Kimmel>The Honorable Life of a Justice, Sherri Kimmel, 18 Pennsylvania Lawyer 43.</ref>

On the high court, Justice Nix developed a reputation as a voice for individual rights. A champion of the broader rights accorded by the state constitution, Justice Nix led the court to interpret the Pennsylvania Constitution to ensure more individual rights than the U.S. Constitution, especially in the areas of search and seizure and sovereign immunity.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> He was also an early voice against prosecutors using their power to exclude African Americans from juries.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> Although generally considered a liberal, in 1977 he was the lone voice for upholding Pennsylvania's death penalty statute.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/>

During his time on the Supreme Court, Nix was honored with 12 honorary doctorates and membership on the board of trustees of the American Inns of Court and many universities.<ref name=Kimmel/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Pope John Paul II inducted Nix as a Commander Knight in the Order of St. Gregory the Great.<ref>Natalie Pompilio, "Justice Nix remembered for legal legacy and kindness", The Philadelphia Inquirer, August 29, 2003.</ref>

Controversies

Justice Nix was involved in several high-profile controversies. In 1966, when running for election as a judge on the Philadelphia court of common pleas, Nix was criticized for continuing to be on his father's payroll as a congressional assistant, despite working as an attorney in private practice, and for collecting money each month from Congress in rent for his father's use of space in Nix's office.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> The rental agreement was dropped soon after.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/>

In 1981 Justice Nix was retained for a second ten-year term in a controversial election. A public feud between Nix and Justice Rolf Larsen took on racial undertones when newspapers reported that Larsen allegedly threatened to publicize the fact that Justice Nix was black in an attempt to defeat him.<ref>David Lauter, "Pa. High Court in Turmoil: Justices Sidestep Misconduct Probe; Impeachment Rumors Abound", Nat'l L.J., June 27, 1983, at 1, 27-28, 32 available 68 Temp. L. Rev. 1041 at 1044.</ref> Larsen was investigated and exonerated by a judicial board of inquiry,<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> however, the disputes between the Justices continued. In 1992 Larsen was accused of improperly communicating with a trial judge about a case (Larsen was later found to have engaged in misconduct and publicly reprimanded).<ref>68 Temp. L. Rev. 1041 at 1045.</ref> Larsen in turn filed court documents accusing Nix of similar conduct.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> Both the District and Appellate courts concluded in 1995 that Nix had, in fact, improperly intervened in the trial in question.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> After stepping down in 1996, Justice Nix said his difficulties with Larsen were "regrettable, but we were able to eliminate that and restore confidence in the judicial system."<ref name=PhilaInquirer/> Larsen was ultimately impeached and removed from office for unrelated misconduct.<ref name=PhilaInquirer/>

Retirement and death

In 1996 Nix announced his retirement from the bench, two years prior to his mandatory retirement.<ref name=JetMagazine>"Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Nix announces retirement from bench", Jet Magazine, March 25, 1996.</ref> In announcing his retirement, Nix said, "It is time for me to walk away and smell the daisies." He indicated that he planned to travel and write, avocations he had put on hold.<ref name=JetMagazine/>

On August 23, 2003, Nix died in Philadelphia, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease.<ref name=":2" />

The official biography of Justice Nix was published in 2010.<ref>The Biography of Robert N.C. Nix Jr. Amazon.</ref>

There is a mural honoring Nix and his father at 15th and Jefferson Streets in Philadelphia.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

See also

References

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