H.C.R. No. 98
 
 
 
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
         WHEREAS, A pioneering crusader for Hispanic civil rights and
  one of the first Mexican Americans appointed to a federal district
  court, the Honorable James DeAnda of Houston passed away on
  September 7, 2006, after a distinguished legal career that spanned
  more than a half-century; and
         WHEREAS, Born in Houston in 1925, James DeAnda was the son of
  immigrants from Mexico who stressed the importance of education; a
  1942 graduate of Houston's Jefferson Davis High School, he began
  college at Texas A&M University but left school to join the Marines
  during World War II, serving in the Pacific theater and in China; he
  completed his undergraduate studies after the war, then earned his
  law degree from The University of Texas at Austin in 1950, becoming
  one of only a few Hispanic attorneys in the state; and
         WHEREAS, Judge DeAnda returned to Houston to start his
  career; he soon became involved in Hernandez v. Texas, which proved
  to be a landmark legal case with far-reaching implications; the
  appeal of the murder conviction of a Hispanic migrant worker in
  Jackson County focused on the trial's all-white jury and argued
  that Latinos had been systematically excluded from the county's
  juries for decades; in 1954, the United States Supreme Court
  accepted the argument and overturned the case as a violation of the
  constitutional guarantee of equal protection; just four years out
  of law school, James DeAnda had helped bring about a decisive civil
  rights victory; and
         WHEREAS, In the years that followed, Judge DeAnda led other
  efforts to further Mexican American rights; he successfully argued
  cases that resulted in the desegregation of schools in southeastern
  Texas, and he joined with others to found the Mexican American Legal
  Defense and Educational Fund in 1968 and Texas Rural Legal Aid in
  1970; and
         WHEREAS, In 1979 President Jimmy Carter appointed him as a
  federal judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District
  of Texas, making him only the second person of Mexican heritage to
  sit on the federal bench; Judge DeAnda remained on the court until
  1992 and was its chief judge for the last four years of his tenure;
  and
         WHEREAS, Returning to private practice, he joined the law
  firm of Solar & Associates in Houston, where he handled civil rights
  cases; a revered figure among legal scholars and civil rights
  activists, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award for
  Community Service from The University of Texas School of Law Alumni
  Association in 2004; and
         WHEREAS, Chief Judge James DeAnda was a courageous advocate
  who stepped forth to herald a new and more equitable era of social
  justice in the United States, and he established a monumental
  legacy of achievement that furthered the rights of Mexican
  Americans; in so doing, he brought about greater equality for all
  citizens of the United States; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the 80th Legislature of the State of Texas
  hereby pay tribute to the life of the Honorable James DeAnda and
  extend deepest condolences to the members of his family: to his
  wife, Joyce DeAnda; to his son, Lou DeAnda; to his sister, Mary
  DeAnda; to his brother, Louis DeAnda; to his stepchildren, Kelly
  Martin, Patrick Martin, and Nikki Greenfield; and to his other
  relatives and many friends and admirers across the state and
  nation; and, be it further
         RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
  prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
  Representatives and Senate adjourn this day, they do so in memory of
  Chief Judge James DeAnda.
 
  Noriega
 
 
Craddick Gattis Miles
 
Allen Geren Miller
 
Alonzo Giddings Moreno
 
Anchia Gonzales Morrison
 
Anderson Gonzalez Toureilles Mowery
 
Aycock Goolsby Murphy
 
Bailey Guillen Naishtat
 
Berman Haggerty Noriega
 
Bohac Hamilton O'Day
 
Bolton Hancock Oliveira
 
Bonnen Hardcastle Olivo
 
Branch Harless Orr
 
Brown of Kaufman Harper-Brown Ortiz, Jr.
 
Brown of Brazos Hartnett Otto
 
Burnam Heflin Parker
 
Callegari Hernandez Patrick
 
Castro Herrero Paxton
 
Chavez Hilderbran Pena
 
Chisum Hill Phillips
 
Christian Hochberg Pickett
 
Cohen Hodge Pierson
 
Coleman Homer Pitts
 
Cook of Navarro Hopson Puente
 
Cook of Colorado Howard of Fort Bend Quintanilla
 
Corte Howard of Travis Raymond
 
Crabb Hughes Riddle
 
Creighton Isett Ritter
 
Crownover Jackson Rodriguez
 
Darby Jones Rose
 
Davis of Harris Keffer Smith of Tarrant
 
Davis of Dallas King of Parker Smith of Harris
 
Delisi King of Taylor Smithee
 
Deshotel King of Zavala Solomons
 
Driver Kolkhorst Strama
 
Dukes Krusee Straus
 
Dunnam Kuempel Swinford
 
Dutton Latham Talton
 
Eiland Laubenberg Taylor
 
Eissler Leibowitz Thompson
 
Elkins Lucio III Truitt
 
England Macias Turner
 
Escobar Madden Van Arsdale
 
Farabee Mallory Caraway Vaught
 
Farias Martinez Veasey
 
Farrar Martinez Fischer Villarreal
 
Flores McCall Vo
 
Flynn McClendon West
 
Frost McReynolds Woolley
 
Gallego Menendez Zedler
 
Garcia Merritt Zerwas
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
 
         I certify that H.C.R. No. 98 was unanimously adopted by a
  rising vote of the House on March 15, 2007.
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
         I certify that H.C.R. No. 98 was unanimously adopted by a
  rising vote of the Senate on April 4, 2007.
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate   
  APPROVED: __________________
                  Date       
   
           __________________
                Governor