Harold Loyd Murphy

Harold Loyd Murphy (March 31, 1927 – December 28, 2022) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Harold Loyd Murphy
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
In office March 31, 2017 – December 28, 2022
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
In office July 29, 1977 – March 31, 2017
Appointed by	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	James Clinkscales Hill
Succeeded by	William M. Ray II
Judge for the Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit, Georgia
In office 1971–1977
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives from Haralson County[1]
In office 1951–1961
Succeeded by	Thomas B. Murphy[2]
Personal details
Born	(1927-03-31)March 31, 1927 Haralson County, Georgia, U.S.
Died	December 28, 2022(2022-12-28) (aged 95)
Political party	Democratic[1]
Education	University of Georgia School of Law (LLB)
Military service
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1945–1946

Education and career

Born in Haralson County, Georgia, on March 31, 1927, Murphy was in the United States Navy towards the end of World War II, from 1945 to 1946. He received a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Georgia School of Law in 1949, and was then in private practice in Buchanan, Georgia, until 1958, and in Buchanan and Tallapoosa, Georgia, until 1971. He was a Georgia state representative from 1951 to 1961. He was an assistant state solicitor general of the Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit in 1956. He was a Superior Court judge for the Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit, Georgia from 1971 to 1977.^[3]

Federal judicial service

On July 7, 1977, Murphy was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia vacated by James Clinkscales Hill. Murphy was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 28, 1977, and received his commission on July 29, 1977. He assumed senior status on March 31, 2017.^[3]

Death and legacy

In 2014, the Alabama State University board of trustees voted to name its school of graduate studies after Murphy, in honor of his ruling in the civil rights case Knight v. Alabama.^[4][5] He died on December 28, 2022, at the age of 95.^[6]

See also

• List of United States federal judges by longevity of service