by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
He stayed longer than he first expected, but Supreme Court Justice Harry Lee Anstead is proud to have served the public and looks forward to having more time to play with his grand kids.
The former Chief Justice of Florida’s highest court will step down from the bench in January after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70, but that doesn’t mean that this eternal athlete is slowing down.
“I’m playing in a seniors basketball tournament in Jacksonville,” said Anstead, Monday before the tournament two days later. “I may not get up and down the court like I used to, but I still love to play.”
He developed a passion for play time as a child growing up at the Brentwood Housing Project in Jacksonville. He was the youngest of six children and his family moved to Jacksonville from Ohio looking for work in the late 1940s. Anstead’s father abandoned the family shortly after they moved to Jacksonville and his mother was left with the responsibility of caring for six kids.
“She is my hero,” said Anstead. “She really didn’t have any practical skills to support us, but she was bound and determined to keep the family together.”
This determination helped her secure a three-bedroom apartment in the Brentwood Housing Project, which was created after the Great Depression.
“The Brentwood Housing Project saved the lives of the Anstead family,” he said.
Brentwood Elementary School was around the corner from the apartment and the area had a park with fields for sports, an activities center and an athletic director to run athletic programs in the park.
“We even had people from the Golden Gloves that would come out and set up an actual boxing ring every year at the park,” said Anstead revealing the depth of the athletic programs. “Every year I’d go out and get clobbered in the first round.”
When he wasn’t competing for one of the Brentwood Park teams, Anstead was working odd jobs like his brothers and sisters to help support the family. He chipped in by delivering groceries and mowing lawns. This work ethic helped him pay for his education at the University of Florida where he earned his undergraduate and law degrees.
He was still able to balance work and play at UF. Anstead walked on to the football team, but after a rough and tumble freshman year the 5-foot, 8-inch, about 160-pounder decided cross country and track and field were more his speed.
“Sports are how I’ve kept active,” said Anstead. “It has played a big role in my happiness in life.”
Shortly after graduation from law school, he was admitted to the Bar in 1964 and spent the next 13 years practicing as a trial and appellate lawyer in West Palm Beach. In 1977 he joined the bench of the Fourth District Court of Appeal and became one of the first sitting judges in the United States to earn an academic degree in the judicial process when he was awarded a Master of Laws degree from the University of Virginia. He was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court in 1994 by Gov. Lawton Chiles and became the state’s 50th chief justice in July, 2002.
Anstead used his time as chief justice to help develop court reform legislation known as Revision 7 to Article V of the Florida Constitution, which shifted court funding from local to state government.
“Prior to the reform, local governments were required to fund a major portion of court systems,” said Anstead. “We ended up with substandard justice systems in some counties that were relying on an agricultural tax base, compared to more metropolitan areas that could afford more cutting edge justice systems.”
He didn’t only say the system needed change, he sought out change.
“I guess I applied a full court press while I was the chief justice,” said Anstead. “I tried to get the governor’s support, talked to every editorial board that would listen across the state and asked local judges to meet with their legislators.”
He was also proud of his contributions to the case of Derrick A. Powell and Eugenia Powell v. Allstate Insurance Company, which came to the Florida Supreme Court in 1995.
The Powells were involved in an auto accident and were awarded damages, but the damages weren’t enough to cover the Powells’ losses, according to Anstead. After the trial was over, one of the jurors notified the Powells’ lawyer and the judge of the case that members of the jury had made numerous racial jokes and statements about the Powells who were black citizens of Jamaican birth. Because of this information the Powells requested a new trial, but were denied by the trial and appellate courts after interviewing the jury regarding the claims.
The Supreme Court overturned the lower courts’ decisions and ordered a new trial. The court stated in its opinion, “It is with great dismay then that we must acknowledge, more than 200 years after declaring this truth to the world, that there are still those among us who would deny equal human dignity to their brothers and sisters of a different color, religion, or ethnic origin. The justice system, and the courts especially, must jealously guard our sacred trust to assure equal treatment before the law. We attempt to uphold that trust today.”
Anstead shook his head and looked off into the distance before expressing his feelings on the case.
“I am ashamed of some of the actions of this court in the late 1950s, early 1960 dealing with racial integration and segregation,” said Anstead. “All persons are created equal. With that case we sent a message that racism would not be tolerated in Florida.”
These moments may be some of the more memorable of his career, but the toughest have come when the court hears death penalty cases.
“We see humanity at its very worst in the facts of the case,” said Anstead. “The process we are talking about involves the taking of another life as punishment for the loss of a life. It is a very emotional and exhaustive procedure.”
With over 14 years on the Florida Supreme Court, it would be easy to understand if Anstead was getting tired as he reached 70, but he still has a lot of light in his eyes as he looks to the future.
“I plan to continue to live in Tallahassee and I had some loose plans to teach when I thought about retiring after my term as chief justice,” said Anstead, “Right now, I just plan on being with my wife (Sue) and enjoying my four grandchildren.”
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