Ira De Ment

Ira De Ment (December 21, 1931 – July 16, 2011) was a United States federal judge.

Early life and education

Born on December 21, 1931 in Birmingham, Alabama. In early life, De Ment attended Phillips High School in Birmingham in 1945 and graduated in 1949. After his graduation, he decided to attend Marion Military Institute as a military student and graduated in 1951. De Ment received a B.S. from the University of Alabama in 1953 and after graduating from the University of Alabama, De Ment served in the U.S. Army Infantry in Germany from 1953 to 1955, and in the Army Reserve and then the Air Force Reserve until 1989. He rose to the rank of major general and was awarded the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, the military's highest peace-time award. He previously had received the Legion of Merit. His passion to law carried him to the University of Alabama School of Law and he received a J.D. in 1958. He was a law clerk, Hon. Pelham J. Merrill, Supreme Court of Alabama from 1958 to 1959, when he briefly served as an assistant state attorney general of Alabama, and then as an assistant United States Attorney of the Middle District of Alabama from 1959 to 1961. He was in private practice in Montgomery, Alabama from 1961 to 1969, working as an assistant city attorney for the City of Montgomery, Alabama from 1965 to 1969. He was the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama from 1969 to 1977, returning to private practice in Montgomery until 1992. He was a special counsel to Alabama Governor Fob James from 1980 to 1982, to Governor George C. Wallace from 1983 to 1986, and to Governor Guy Hunt from 1987 to 1988, and in 1991. He was the Chief Judge of the Wake Island Court of Appeals from 1985 to 1992.

Federal judicial service and death

On November 14, 1991, De Ment was nominated by President George H. W. Bush to a seat on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama vacated by Truman M. Hobbs. De Ment was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 13, 1992, and received his commission on March 18, 1992. He assumed senior status on April 15, 2002. On July 17, 2011, he died after a long battle with Parkinson's Disease. In 2011, Mark Fuller was nominated by George W. Bush as a successor in the position after Judge De Ment’s death.

Chandler v. Siegelman: DeKalb School Prayer Case.

During his judicial career, the most significant ruling is Chandler v. Siegelman case, as know as DeKalb school prayer case. It all started in 1993, when Alabama legislature passed law permitting public schools to perform prayer at any school event to students. In 1996, Alabama Civil Liberties Union filed a suit challenging the law that was passed in 1993 for violating the establishment clause of the First Amendment. In following year, March 13 of 1997, Judge Ira De Ment ruled that Alabama’s law to permit public schools to require prayer at any public school event is unconstitutional. Two months after the decision has made, governor Fob James filed petitions to both the Supreme Court and the 11th Circuit that Judge De Ment’s decision violated students from practicing freedom of speech and freedom of religious exercise. Furthermore, governor Fob James also sent a letter, which argued that establishment clauses are for states to resolve, not for federal courts or federal government body to resolve, to Judge De Ment to dismiss the case. However, his both of petitions were denied, but separate petition by the state attorney general has accepted. In 1999, 11th circuit overturned Judge De Ment’s decision stating that his ruling violated freedom of speech and freedom of religious exercise. Furthermore, 11th circuit judge panels stated that as long as state does not participated in encouraging public school to require prayer, practicing prayer at any public school event is permitted and constitutional according to the First Amendment clause. In the same year, Civil Liberties Union appealed the 11th circuit’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the U.S. Supreme Court sent the case back to 11th circuit with specific instructions to reconsider the decision in light of the Texas school prayer case. However, 11th circuit reaffirmed its ruling because Alabama school prayer case was not similar to the Texas school prayer case. In 2001, Civil Liberties Union appealed 11th circuit’s decision again to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Court denied to review the case.

Governor Fob James was not the only one who wrote 34 pages long petition to the U.S. Supreme Court and 11th circuit. A group of people wrote a petition of Judge De Ment to remove him from the district court judge position due to violation of establishment clause of the First Amendment and, most importantly, due to engagement of Judge De Ment in tyranny behavior to the house of representative. A lot of people were not satisfied or happy with Judge De Ment’s decision on Alabama school prayer case because people with Christianity background believed that prayer was necessary. The petition to impeach Judge De Ment contained that Judge De Ment abused his power to rule the decision and his tyranny behavior, which prohibiting the free exercise rights of religion and freedom of speech, should be charged and removed from the office. The petition also stated that such behavior that made by Judge De Ment would damage the value of people in the future. This petition by a group of people received a lot of spotlight from the media, but was not reviewed by the house of representative.

Awards and Honors

Judge De Ment did not receive any awards or honor granted in his judicial career, but awarded the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal and received the Legion of Merit. Publications There has not been any publications by Judge De Ment, but archives and legal reviews related to Judge De Ment’s work.

Sources

• Ira De Ment at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.