View source for John Sirica

{{Short description|American federal judge (1904–1992)}}
{{Redirect|Sirica}}
{{Redirect|Maximum John|the other U.S. federal judge with the nickname "Maximum John"|John H. Wood Jr.}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = 
| name                = John Sirica
| honorific-suffix    = 
| image               = John Sirica c. 1973.jpg
| image_upright       = 0.8
| alt                 = Black-and-white headshot of Sirica
| caption             = Sirica, {{circa|1973}}
| office              = [[Senior status|Senior Judge]] of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]
| term_start          = October 31, 1977
| term_end            = August 14, 1992
| office1             = Chief Judge of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]
| term_start1         = 1971
| term_end1           = 1974
| predecessor1        = [[Edward Matthew Curran]]
| successor1          = [[George Luzerne Hart Jr.]]
| office2             = Judge of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]
| term_start2         = March 28, 1957
| term_end2           = October 31, 1977
| nominator2          = 
| appointer2          = [[List of federal judges appointed by Dwight D. Eisenhower|Dwight D. Eisenhower]]
| predecessor2        = [[Henry Albert Schweinhaut]]
| successor2          = [[Harold H. Greene]]
| pronunciation       = 
| birth_name          = John Joseph Sirica
| birth_date          = {{Birth date|1904|03|19}}
| birth_place         = [[Waterbury, Connecticut|Waterbury]], [[Connecticut]], U.S.
| death_date          = {{Death date and age|1992|08|14|1904|03|19}}
| death_place         = [[Washington, D.C.]], U.S.
| death_cause         = 
| resting_place       = [[Gate of Heaven Cemetery (Silver Spring, Maryland)|Gate of Heaven Cemetery]]<br>[[Silver Spring, Maryland|Silver Spring]], [[Maryland]]
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| citizenship         = 
| nationality         = 
| party               = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| otherparty          = 
| height              = 
| spouse              = Lucile Camalier (1923-1998)
| partner             = 
| relations           = 
| children            = 
| parents             = 
| mother              = 
| father              = 
| relatives           = 
| residence           = 
| education           = [[Georgetown University]] ([[LLB]])
| alma_mater          = 
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| signature           = 
| signature_alt       = 
| website             = <!--Embedded templates / Footnotes-->
| footnotes           = 
}}
'''John Joseph Sirica''' (March 19, 1904 – August 14, 1992) was an American lawyer and jurist who was a [[United States federal judge|United States district judge]] of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]] from 1957 to 1992. Sirica became known in the early 1970s for presiding over the federal criminal trials relating to the origins of the [[Watergate scandal]], which eventually led to the [[Presidency_of_Richard_Nixon#Watergate_and_resignation|resignation]] of President [[Richard Nixon]].

==Early life and education==
{{watergate|Judiciary}}
Sirica was born in [[Waterbury, Connecticut|Waterbury]], [[Connecticut]], to Ferdinando (Fred) Sirica, an immigrant from Italy, and Rose (Zinno) Sirica, whose parents were from Italy. Between 1910 and 1918, the Sirica family lived in various cities across the United States, while Fred worked as a barber and made several unsuccessful attempts at running small businesses. The family moved to [[Washington, D.C.]], in 1918, where John attended [[Emerson Preparatory School]] and eventually transferred to Columbia Preparatory School.<ref name="WaPoObit"/> In 1922, Fred was running a two-lane bowling alley and poolhall, which was raided by the police for violation of the Prohibition-era [[Volstead Act]] when liquor was found in the restroom. Fred was arrested, but the charges were dropped. He soon sold the business and moved away.<ref name="auto">{{cite book|last1=Sirica|first1=John|title=To Set the Record Straight: The Break-In, the Tapes, the Conspirators, the Pardon|date=April 1, 1979|publisher=W W Norton & Co |location=New York|isbn=0393012344|url=https://archive.org/details/tosetrecordstrai00siri}}</ref>
Meanwhile, John went directly from high school to law school, which was possible in the District of Columbia at the time, and, after two false starts, entered [[Georgetown Law]] and received a [[Bachelor of Laws]] in 1926.<ref name="WaPoObit"/>

==Career==
Sirica fought as a boxer in Washington and Miami in the 1920s and 1930s. He was torn between a career as a boxer and the career in law that he followed after earning a law degree and passing the bar. Boxing champion [[Jack Dempsey]] became a close friend.<ref name="NYTObit">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/15/us/sirica-88-dies-persistent-judge-in-fall-of-nixon.html|title=Sirica, 88, Dies; Persistent Judge In Fall of Nixon|newspaper=The New York Times|date=August 15, 1992}}</ref> Sirica was in private practice of law in Washington, D.C. from 1926 to 1930.<ref name="fjc.gov">{{cite web|url=https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/sirica-john-joseph|title=Sirica, John Joseph - Federal Judicial Center|website=www.fjc.gov}}</ref> He was an [[Assistant United States Attorney]] for the District of Columbia from 1930 to 1934, and returned to private practice from 1934 to 1957.<ref name="fjc.gov"/> He also served as [[general counsel]] to the House Select Committee to Investigate the [[Federal Communications Commission]] in 1944; his appointment was opposed by the two Republican members of the committee.<ref>{{cite magazine|title = Sirica New House Probe Counsel | magazine = [[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting and Broadcast Advertising]] | date = April 3, 1944 | volume = 26 | issue = 14 | page = 14 | location = Washington, D.C.}}</ref> Sirica resigned in protest over how the committee dealt with the [[WMCA (AM)|WMCA]] radio scandal that year and re-entered private practice.<ref name="fjc.gov"/> In 1947, he joined the law firm of Hogan and Hartson in Washington, D.C. (now called [[Hogan Lovells]]).<ref name="times">{{cite news|last1=Mason|first1=Howard|title=Sirica likes his country the way immigrants' sons do|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/11/04/archives/a-man-for-this-season-sirica-likes-his-country-the-way-immigrants.html|access-date=October 4, 2017|work=The New York Times|date=November 4, 1973}}</ref>

==Federal judicial service==
Sirica was nominated by President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] on February 25, 1957, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia vacated by Judge [[Henry Albert Schweinhaut]]. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 26, 1957, and received his commission on March 28, 1957. He served as Chief Judge and a member of the [[Judicial Conference of the United States]] from 1971 to 1974. He assumed [[senior status]] on October 31, 1977. His service terminated on his death on August 14, 1992.<ref name="fjc.gov"/>

Notably, he ruled the law banning Navy women from ships to be unconstitutional in the case ''Owens v. Brown''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/455/291/1415795/|title=Owens v. Brown, 455 F. Supp. 291 (D.D.C. 1978)|website=Justia Law}}</ref>

===Watergate===

Sirica rose to national prominence when he ordered President [[Richard Nixon]] to surrender his recordings of [[White House]] conversations to Federal prosecutors. Sirica's involvement in the case began when he presided over the trial of the Watergate burglars. He did not believe the claim that they had acted alone, and through the use of provisional sentencing strongly encouraged them to give information about higher-ups before final sentencing. Under provisional sentencing, judges could give defendants a few months to ponder their sentence before it became final.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Watergate, Judge Sirica, and the Rule of Law|author=Anthony J. Gaughan|page=370|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/303899263.pdf|journal=McGeorge Law Review|volume=42|issue=2}}</ref> One defendant, [[James W. McCord Jr.]], wrote a letter describing a broader scheme of involvement by people in the Nixon administration.

===Judicial demeanor===
Experienced as a trial lawyer, Sirica was known for his "no-nonsense" demeanor on the bench. His critics said he lacked understanding of people and compassion, that he was guilty of careless legal errors, that he had a misguided view of the purposes of judicial power. Most of all, they attacked him for his conduct of the Watergate trial.<ref name="times"/>  He was nicknamed "Maximum John" for giving defendants the maximum sentence that guidelines allowed.<ref>{{cite news| url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/onpolitics/watergate/johnsirica.html| title = washingtonpost.com - watergate scandal and deep throat update, john sirica| newspaper = [[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>

==Book==
In 1979, Sirica published a book, co-authored with [[John Stacks]], detailing his participation in the Watergate cases under the title ''To Set the Record Straight''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Review: To Set the Record Straight|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/john-j-sirica-2/to-set-the-record-straight-2/|website=KirkusReviews.com|publisher=Kirkus|access-date=December 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Muller|first1=Henry|title=John Stacks|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2123802,00.html|magazine=Time|access-date=28 August 2015}}</ref><ref name="auto"/>

==Recognition==

For his role in uncovering the truth about Watergate, Sirica was named ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine's [[Time Person of the Year|Man of the Year]] in January 1974.
<ref>{{cite web|title= Judge J. Sirica, Man of the Year, Jan. 7, 1974|publisher= Time|url= https://content.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19740107,00.html}}</ref>

In 1977, he received the Golden Plate Award of the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]] presented by Awards Council member [[Leon Jaworski]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement |website=www.achievement.org|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|url= https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#public-service}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title= Our History Photo|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|url= https://achievement.org/our-history/}}</ref>

==Death==
Sirica suffered a severe [[heart attack]] while at a speaking engagement on February 5, 1976.<ref name="LATObit">{{cite news|title=Watergate Judge John Sirica Dies of Cardiac Arrest|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=August 16, 1992|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-08-16-mn-6934-story.html}}</ref> In the final years of his life, Sirica suffered from a wide range of ailments, both minor and severe.{{Citation needed|date=June 2015}} In the last few weeks of his life, he came down with pneumonia. He fell and broke his collarbone a few days before his death, and was hospitalized at [[Georgetown University Medical Center]] in Washington, D.C.<ref name="NYTObit"/> He died in the hospital of [[cardiac arrest]] at 4:30&nbsp;p.m. on August 14, 1992.<ref name="LATObit" /><ref name="WaPoObit">{{cite news|last=Barnes|first=Bart|title=John Sirica, Watergate Judge, Dies|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 15, 1992|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2002/06/11/AR2005112200807_pf.html}}</ref> He was interred at [[Gate of Heaven Cemetery (Silver Spring, Maryland)|Gate of Heaven Cemetery]] in [[Silver Spring, Maryland]].{{sfn|Franscell|2012|page=92}} Sirica was survived by his wife, Lucile Camalier Sirica, and his three children, John Jr., Patricia, and Eileen.<ref name="WaPoObit" />

==In popular culture==
In the 2022 documentary, Watergate, Blueprint for a scandal by Herzog and Co. aired on CNN

In the 2023 [[Max (streaming service)|HBO Max]] miniseries ''[[White House Plumbers (miniseries)|White House Plumbers]]'', Sirica is portrayed by [[F. Murray Abraham]].

==Bibliography==
*{{cite book|last=Franscell|first=Ron|title=The Crime Buff's Guide to Outlaw Washington, D.C.|location=Guilford, Conn.|publisher=Globe Pequot Press|date=2012|isbn=9780762773855|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dg5eW51xl7QC&q=%22Gate+of+Heaven+Cemetery%22+%22Silver+Spring&pg=PA92}}
*{{cite book|last1=Sirica|first1=John|title=To Set the Record Straight: The Break-In, the Tapes, the Conspirators, the Pardon|date=April 1, 1979|publisher=W W Norton & Co |location=New York|isbn=0393012344|url=https://archive.org/details/tosetrecordstrai00siri}}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/onpolitics/watergate/johnsirica.html ''Washington Post'' biography]
* [https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/15/us/sirica-88-dies-persistent-judge-in-fall-of-nixon.html ''New York Times'' biography]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20030804122448/http://www.time.com/time/poy2000/archive/1973.html ''Time Magazine'' 1973 Man of the Year Biography]
* [http://www.turkewitzlaw.com/watergate/index.htm Watergate trial sketches, with Judge Sirica]
* {{Find a Grave|19473}}
* Finding aid to the [https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms001036 John J. Sirica papers] at the [https://www.loc.gov/ Library of Congress]

{{s-start}}
{{s-legal}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Henry Albert Schweinhaut]]}}
{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Judge of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]}}|years=1957–1977}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Harold H. Greene]]}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Edward Matthew Curran]]}}
{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Chief Judge of the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]}}|years=1971–1974}}
{{s-aft|after=[[George Luzerne Hart Jr.]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Time Persons of the Year 1951–1975|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sirica, John}}
[[Category:1904 births]]
[[Category:1992 deaths]]
[[Category:Georgetown University Law Center alumni]]
[[Category:Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia]]
[[Category:Writers from Waterbury, Connecticut]]
[[Category:Boxers from Connecticut]]
[[Category:United States district court judges appointed by Dwight D. Eisenhower]]
[[Category:Washington, D.C., Republicans]]
[[Category:Burials at Gate of Heaven Cemetery (Silver Spring, Maryland)]]
[[Category:20th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:Watergate scandal investigators]]
[[Category:Assistant United States attorneys]]
[[Category:People associated with Hogan Lovells]]
[[Category:Time Person of the Year]]
[[Category:American people of Italian descent]]