Falcon Black Hawkins Jr. Explained

Falcon Black Hawkins Jr.
Office:Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
Term Start:October 1, 1993
Term End:July 20, 2005
Office1:Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
Term Start1:1990
Term End1:1993
Predecessor1:Solomon Blatt Jr.
Successor1:Charles Weston Houck
Office2:Judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
Term Start2:September 26, 1979
Term End2:October 1, 1993
Appointer2:Jimmy Carter
Predecessor2:Seat established by 92 Stat. 1629
Successor2:Cameron McGowan Currie
Birth Name:Falcon Black Hawkins Jr.
Birth Date:16 March 1927
Birth Place:Charleston, South Carolina
Education:The Citadel (BS)
University of South Carolina School of Law (JD)

Falcon Black Hawkins Jr. (March 16, 1927 – July 20, 2005) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.

Education and career

Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Hawkins graduated from North Charleston High School in 1944. He was briefly in the United States Merchant Marine before he enlisted as a private in the United States Army at the end of World War II, from 1945 to 1946. He later received a Bachelor of Science degree from The Citadel in 1958 and a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1963. He was a veteran student at The Citadel and concurrently worked at the Charleston Naval Shipyard where he held the position of Leadingman Electronics. He was in private practice in Charleston from 1963 to 1979. He was initially in private practice with future United States Senator Ernest F. Hollings at the law firm of Hollings and Hawkins, until Hollings entered the United States Senate in 1967.[1]

Federal judicial service

On June 5, 1979, Hawkins was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to a new seat on the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina created by 92 Stat. 1629. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 25, 1979, and received his commission on September 26, 1979. He served as Chief Judge from 1990 to 1993, assuming senior status on October 1, 1993. Hawkins served in that capacity until his death, at his home in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, on July 20, 2005.

Honor

In 2003, Hawkins was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws (Legum Doctor, LL.D.) from The Citadel.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Falcon Hawkins Jr.'s Obituary on Charleston Post & Courier. Charleston Post & Courier.