87R19711 TBO-D
 
  By: Reynolds H.R. No. 636
 
 
 
R E S O L U T I O N
         WHEREAS, A full and generous life has drawn to a close with
  the death of the Honorable Donald W. Bankston of Richmond on March
  24, 2021, at the age of 73; and
         WHEREAS, Born in Dallas on September 24, 1947, Don Bankston
  graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School, and he attended the
  University of North Texas before earning his law degree at the
  University of Houston; after beginning his legal career in Houston,
  he moved his family and his practice to Richmond in 1984; and
         WHEREAS, Mr. Bankston worked as an assistant district
  attorney for Fort Bend County for three years, but for much of his
  46-year career, he was a respected criminal defense attorney who
  handled many high profile cases, including major drug and capital
  murder trials; he was known for his strong stands on behalf of
  constitutional rights and against police brutality and
  prosecutorial overreach, and he was a member of the Fort Bend County
  Criminal Defense Bar Association and the Texas Criminal Defense
  Lawyers Association; since October 2019, he had served as associate
  justice on the 268th District Court; and
         WHEREAS, A champion for his political ideals, Mr. Bankston
  played a leading role in organizing the local Democratic Party in
  the 1990s, and he chaired the Fort Bend County Democratic Party and
  served as a member of the State Democratic Executive Committee; he
  was admired by his peers and adversaries alike as a dedicated
  activist, negotiator, and mentor to many younger public servants;
  and
         WHEREAS, Mr. Bankston and his wife, Susan DuQuesnay
  Bankston, shared a loving relationship for 50 years; he took great
  pride in his three sons, Bryan, Mark, and the late Chip Bankston,
  his daughter-in-law, Elizabeth, and his grandson, Benjamin; and
         WHEREAS, Don Bankston was a devoted family man, an engaged
  citizen, and a skilled attorney and jurist, and his commitment to
  public service and to equal justice will continue to inspire all
  those who knew and loved him; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas
  Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Donald W. Bankston and
  extend sincere condolences to his family and to his many friends;
  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 adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Don
  Bankston.