born Oct. 30, 1918, Halyeville, Ala.
died July 23, 1999, Montgomery, Ala.
U.S. judge.
After graduating at the top of his law-school class at the University of Alabama in 1943, he joined the army, becoming an infantry lieutenant. After the war he returned to Alabama to practice law. Appointed to the federal district court for middle Alabama in 1955, he became widely known for his decisions in support of the civil rights movement . In 1955 he voted with the majority to strike down the bus-segregation law challenged by Rosa Parks , and in 1965 he issued the order that allowed Martin Luther King, Jr. , to lead a historic civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery. He also ordered the desegregation of various public facilities in Alabama, and he was the first federal judge to dictate legislative reapportionment. He served on the U.S. District Court of Appeals from 1979 to 1992. In 1995 he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.