Beth Murray, age 16, of Santa Rosa, Calif., for her question:
HOW MANY YEARS WAS EARL WARREN CHIEF JUSTICE?
Earl Warren is an American jurist and political leader who is best known as the Chief Justice who led the United States Supreme Court in making many sweeping changes in civil rights laws and in criminal procedures. Warren was Chief Justice for 16 years from 1953 to 1969.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Warren as the 14th Chief Justice of the U.S. He served on the bench until his retirement, presiding over the generally liberal "Warren Court."
Many decisions of great consequence were handed down during Warren's tenure as Chief Justice, especially in the areas of civil rights, religious freedom and censorship. Warren was concerned with upholding the rights of the individual, a concern that was reflected in numerous court decisions.
In 1954 the court reached a landmark decision in "Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka," declaring unconstitutional racial segregation in public schools. Warren stated in his opinion that "separate education facilities are inherently unequal." The ruling was later extended to areas such as public transportation.
Another major decision came in 1966 in "Miranda vs. State of Arizona." The court ruled that criminal suspects had to be informed of their rights, including the right to remain silent and the right to counsel, before questioning. The "Miranda" decision was one of many Warren Court rulings to protect the rights of the accused.
Other decisions reached during Warren's years on the court dealt with legislative apportionment, the basic rights of citizenship and limitation of the use of libel laws. His judicial performance won him both praise and criticism.
In 1963 Warren headed the commission formed to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The commissions findings that there was a single assassin and no evidence of a conspiracy were published in the "Warren Report."
Warren was born in Los Angeles, Calif. in 1891 and educated at the University of California. He was admitted to the bar in 1914 and practiced law in the San Francisco area. He held a number of local government offices including three terms as district attorney of Alameda County. He was a liberal Republican.
In 1938 Warren was elected attorney general of California and during his four years in office he increased his reputation as a strong foe of racketeers.
In 1942 Warren was elected governor of California. His progressive policies won him wide support in both the Republican and Democratic parties. In 1946 and again in 1950 he was reelected governor with bipartisan support.
As governor, Warren reduced taxes while expanding state offices.
Warren lost an election only once, when in 1948 he was the Republican candidate for vice president in the unsuccessful presidential campaign of Thomas E. Dewey.
Warren died at the age of 83 in 1974.