by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
His conviction for civil rights was as solid as the sign that now bears his name in front of the Federal Courthouse in Jacksonville.
The 15-story building was officially named the Bryan Simpson United States Courthouse during a ceremony Monday. The full name of its namesake is John Milton Bryan Simpson and his law career spanned nearly 50 years in Florida.
A lot of names were mentioned when U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown selected a committee to pick one for the new Federal Courthouse that was completed in the fall of 2002.
“We talked about a lot of different people from Jacksonville who were related to the law community,” said Stephen Durden, a member of the selection committee and professor at Florida Coastal School of Law. “It was hard not to think of Judge Simpson, though. He was a man who stood for the law and human dignity. His is as good a name as you can get.”
Some members of the selection committee weren’t aware that one of Judge Simpson’s decisions allowed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to march in St. Augustine and the city’s officials could not interfere with the march. Simpson also made landmark decisions on desegregation, which included ordering the desegregation of public schools in Orlando and Daytona Beach, and city pools and golf courses in Jacksonville.
“The selection was difficult. There were a lot of good names,” said Noel Lawrence, an attorney with Lawrence & Parker. “After a couple of meetings it was clear that Judge Simpson was the choice. After getting on the committee I leaned about what he faced personally during his career and that cemented my convictions.”
Simpson’s son, Bryan Jr., described some of the problems the family faced because of his father’s strong belief in equality for all people.
“When I was a young boy I learned that my father had gotten death threats through the mail,” said Simpson. “He told me that he didn’t think anyone who was serious about killing him would bother writing him a letter.”
Friend and colleague U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Gerald Tjoflat explained how Simpson created his own system of public defenders before there was such a system.
“He would call out a name and tell lawyers to be in court on a Thursday,” said Tjoflat. “They would represent 10-15 indigent cases that day out of their own pocket.”
Simpson spent his entire career in Florida. He was born in Kissimmee on May 30, 1903 and passed away in Jacksonville Aug. 22, 1987. Between those two dates he graduated from the University of Florida College of Law in 1926, finishing in six years. After earning his law degree he moved to Jacksonville that same year to begin his law practice. He was an attorney for 20 years in Jacksonville. He served as assistant state’s attorney for the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida from 1933-39. He was judge of the Criminal Court of Record in Duval County from 1939-43 and again from 1945-46. He served in the U.S. Army as a lieutenant from 1943-45 at the age of 41.
Shortly after his return from military service, Simpson served as a judge for the Fourth Judicial Circuit from 1946-50. He was then nominated by President Harry Truman to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in 1950. He was chief judge from 1961-62. Simpson was reassigned to the Middle District of Florida in 1962 and served as its chief judge from 1962-66.
President Lyndon Johnson selected Simpson for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in 1966. He earned senior status on June 30, 1975. This achievement created an opening for Tjoflat.
“He was an icon,” said Tjoflat. “He was, by far, the best trial judge in the state if not the Southeast.”
Bryan Simpson U.S. Courthouse
Fourteen floors with a basement parking level
457,416 gross square feet with 301,270 square feet of occupiable building space
Final Building Cost: $84,414,948
Construction began: 1999
Construction finished: 2002
Courtrooms: 17
Other: Jury deliberation areas, jury assembly, grand jury suites, holding cells.
356-2466