Judge John V. Singleton Jr.

1918 - 2015

Judge John V. Singleton, Jr.
1918-2015
Retired Chief Judge John V. Singleton passed away in Houston, Texas, on the morning of his 97th birthday, March 20, 2015. Judge Singleton was appointed to the bench in 1966 by President Lyndon Johnson and served on the United States District Court, Southern District of Texas with distinction for 27 years before retiring in 1992. For 11 of his 27 years, he was the Chief Judge of the Court. He leaves a legacy not only as a distinguished jurist, but also as a naval officer, and a passionate advocate for his clients, future leaders, young lawyers and the principles he believed in.
Judge Singleton was born March 20, 1918, in Kaufman, Texas, to Jeannie Shelton Singleton and John Singleton, Sr. He called Waxahachie his home town and was delighted when named to the Waxahachie High School Hall of Fame. Then, the University of Texas captured his heart. At UT, he was "branded" a Cowboy, a UT Cheerleader, a legendary campus leader and an exceptional scholar. In 2012, his fraternity Delta Tau Delta honored him as its Distinguished Achievement Alum. He received a B.A, and started UT Law School, achieving Order of the Coif, but Pearl Harbor prompted him to join the Navy in 1942. He graduated naval school as an Ensign, obtained leave to take the State Bar Exam and was admitted to the Bar in 1942. During WWII, Judge Singleton served as a Gunnery Officer on the USS Dempsey in the South Pacific, then the USS Greenwood in the Panama Canal. He saw combat and participated in memorable life-saving missions at sea in numerous conflicts and island invasions.
After the war, Judge Singleton practiced with Fulbright & Jaworski and later formed his own firm. His practice flourished, but his passion for politics also kept him busy. He did not politic for self-interest, but rather to support the people he believed able to meet the challenges of the 50's and early 60's. He worked hard, starting at the grass roots, driving a sound truck through Texas counties for LBJ, stump speaking for John Connally and eventually working with the White House, the Governor's Mansion, and serving as Party Chairman. Governor Connally learned he could trust Singleton's ability to handle the most important events and asked Singleton to organize President and Jacqueline Kennedy's last visit to Houston. He took care of every detail, working for months in advance with the Secret Service and various officials, and at the end of the visit, the President invited him to go on with them to Dallas. The Judge declined because there was still work to be done, and he shook JFK's hand as he and Jackie made their fateful way to Dallas in 1963.
Judge Singleton left the private practice of law and the world of politics and accepted a federal bench in 1966. Again, he was prolific, writing more than 300 opinions and achieving a historically low reversal rate. Many of his decisions reflected his wisdom and balanced views on the challenges presented in those years in civil rights, voting rights and personal liberty. Perhaps the most complex cases Judge Singleton handled were the Corrugated Container cases from 1978-1981 that consumed over a year of days in trial. For his service as a judge and Chief, he received honors and recognition, but the most meaningful to him came when he was 95, and the sitting federal judges generously installed a bust of Judge Singleton in his former courtroom and held a ceremony for the occasion. He often recounted the advice he got in 1966: "Never forget the people." He said he tried to live by that advice, and he would hope he earned as his epitaph: "Judge Singleton never forgot the people." Judge Singleton's papers and historic photographs are now a part of the permanent collection of the Briscoe Center for American History, curated by The University of Texas Library.
Judge Singleton reflected that one of the many good things that came from being a federal judge was his "family of law clerks." He cherished them, all 56 of them, as his extended family, and regarded Linda Marshall and Dena Palermo as his daughters. Judge Singleton thoroughly enjoyed life. He was an extraordinary storyteller and equally great listener who laughed at other people's stories with as much gusto as he laughed at his own. With his welcoming smile, grand demeanor, coiffed white mane and memorable presence, he was truly a Houston institution. He spent much of his leisure time in fierce competition with a Titleist golf ball at his beloved Lakeside Country Club, which he joined in 1955. Until age 95, he played 18 holes, 3 days a week, then cut back to 9 holes. The Lakeside friends and staff played a major role in his active social life, along with his adored wife of 12 years, Pat Singleton, who survives him. He is also survived by Ronnie Murphy whom he loved as the son he never had. He is preceded in death by his parents, brother Joe Singleton, cousin Dr. Ed Singleton, and first wife Jane. Pallbearers are Hon. Melinda Harmon, Hon. Carolyn King, Diana Marshall, Linda Marshall, Dena Palermo and Yvette Perry. Honorary Pallbearers are the U.S. Circuit Judges, 5th Cir. Court of Appeals; the U.S. District Judges, Southern District of Texas; the U.S. Bankruptcy Judges; the U.S. Magistrate Judges; The Singleton Family of Law Clerks; Friends at Lakeside Country Club; Ronnie Murphy, Dr. Denton Cooley, Frank Rea and Richard "Racehorse" Haynes. A memorial will be held Tuesday, March 31, 2:00 p.m., St Martin's Episcopal Church, 717 Sage, followed by a reception for friends at Lakeside Country Club. In lieu of customary remembrances, gifts may be made to one's own charity or to the Judge John V. Singleton Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Law at The University of Texas at Austin, 1-800-687-4602.