Have you ever wondered what life was like in Jacksonville half a century ago? It was a different era of history, culture and politics but there are often parallels between the kind of stories that made headlines then and today. As interesting as the differences may be, so are the similarities. These are some of the top stories from this week in 1963. The items were compiled from the Jacksonville Public Library's periodical archives by Staff Writer Max Marbut.
• Public Defender Ed Austin filed the first batch of claims against the future assets of indigent clients represented by his office.
Austin filed statements of claims against 131 defendants for amounts totaling $11,535. He said all but three were filed in Duval County Circuit Court, with two going to Tallahassee and one to Raiford.
The claims were authorized by the same 1963 law that created the Office of the Public Defender to represent, at the state's expense, persons accused of felonies who were so poor they could not afford to hire counsel.
Austin said the claims were an effort by the state to recoup at least a part of the funds spent under the public defender law.
Austin's office started operations on a small scale in July, but the case- load had expanded since Austin was able to hire assistants.
• Circuit Judge William L. Durden approved a $140 million bond issue for improvements to the Jacksonville Expressway and to refund $66.8 million of outstanding Jacksonville Expressway Authority bonds.
However, the validation was to face a test when the Florida Supreme Court considered an appeal to be taken by the State Attorney's Office, which opposed the issue.
A period of 20 days was allowed to file an appeal from a bond validation order, but Assistant State Attorney Frank Scruby said that step would be taken "within the next few days."
Expressway Authority attorneys David Foerster and W.D. Jones said that if all went well, a contract could be awarded by mid-1964 for the largest single project in the improvement program, a high-level bridge across the St. Johns River at Commodores Point.
Foerster said the issue, if finally approved, would add 94 miles of roads to the 45 already covered by the expressway system.
The contemplated $140 million bond issue would be the second-largest floated by a public agency in Florida, second only to a $167 million bond issued by the Florida Turnpike Authority.
In addition to the State Attorney's Office, the bond issue was opposed by resident Leon Anderson. The principal objection was that the authority was not empowered by law to spend bond funds on a number of the outlying feeder roads to be improved with $25 million of the $140 million bond issue.
The opponents said those roads, designated by the Board of County Commissioners and approved by the authority and consulting engineers, were not properly a part of the expressway system.
When he announced his ruling, Durden said he was holding that the Expressway Authority complied with all legal requirements in preparing the bond issue. He said he felt he could not rule on the propriety of each and every project included in the program separately, but had to consider the program as a whole.
The $25 million segment of improvements was granted to the Board of County Commissioners in return for that board's pledge of Duval County's share of state gasoline tax as security for the bonds. The primary security was revenue from expressway toll bridges.
• U.S. District Judge Bryan Simpson denied an application for a writ of habeas corpus and a potential new trial for three men condemned to death for the murder of a local grocer.
Simpson ruled that no federal question had been raised in the petition filed by Carl G. Swanson on behalf of Willie Young, Harold Simon and Calvin W. Thomas.
The three were convicted of first-degree murder in the slaying of Eugene Richardson, who was killed in his Myrtle Avenue grocery store on June 9, 1960, during a robbery attempt.
The men were sentenced to die in Florida's electric chair, but Simpson issued a temporary stay of execution at his home at 8 p.m. the day the before the sentence was to be carried out, pending his hearing on the petition.
Arguing for denial of the writ were State Attorney William T. Hallowes and James Mahorner Jr., assistant state attorney general.
Swanson based his application for a writ upon the contention that the defendants had been denied their constitutional right to due process of law because they had not been taken before a committing magistrate immediately after their arrest. Florida law required that a prisoner had to be given such a hearing "at the earliest opportunity."
Swanson alleged the men were denied a hearing until after they had signed confessions to the slaying and that the confessions were therefore not voluntarily given.
Hallowes said the voluntary nature of the confessions had not been challenged during the trial, nor was the question raised on appeal of the convictions.
The government attorneys cited cases, which held that the federal court had no jurisdiction where no violation of the U.S. Constitution was charged and where it was alleged only that the petitioners had been denied due process of a state law.
Swanson said after the hearing he did not intend to appeal Simpson's ruling. Simpson ordered his stay of execution to remain in effect through Oct. 17 to give Swanson an opportunity to appeal if the convicted men sought such action.
• More than 3,000 went to the Civic Auditorium for the opening of Arts Festival Six.
The festival, expected to be the largest ever staged in Jacksonville, opened with brief ceremonies at the Water Street entrance to the auditorium.
After a brief flare of music from the Lake Shore Junior High School band and a presentation of colors by a detachment from Jacksonville Naval Air Station, John Simpson, president of the sponsoring Jacksonville Council of the Arts, spoke briefly and introduced the festival and community leaders.
Simpson said the exhibits and performances were "but a sampling of the cultural opportunities available in Jacksonville."
Mayor Haydon Burns cited the event as "another example of the cooperation that has contributed so greatly to the progress of the community."
• Florence Seymour, coordinator for the Florida Federation of Arts, said paintings by Jacksonville artists would be exhibited in a number of Downtown buildings during the 38th annual American Art Week Nov. 1-7.
Persons wishing to exhibit their work during the week were asked to submit a list of their paintings at a luncheon at the Women's Club of Jacksonville. The exhibit opportunity was open to anyone who wished to submit work, Seymour said.
Frances B. Kinne, dean of the College of Fine Arts and Music at Jacksonville University, would be the guest speaker at the meeting. Her subject was "Fine Arts in the 20th Century."
• Sheriff Dale Carson and county jail Warden Tom Heaney Jr. were recognized by the Jacksonville Area Chamber of Commerce for "effective work in the area of jail administration."
A resolution adopted by the chamber's board of governors said the county jail was visited and inspected at Carson's invitation by the law enforcement subcommittee of the chamber's City, County and State Affairs Committee.
The resolution said the visiting committee found the jail was "operated in a highly creditable and efficient manner." It also was noted that the jail accommodated more than 14,000 inmates annually.
Plaques were presented to Carson and Heaney by chamber President C.W. Beaufort on behalf of the chamber's board.