Deactivating an Activist

The word "activist," applied to a judge, usually refers to his judicial philosophy. It suggests a man who is always ready to extend the reach of the judiciary. In the case of Elbert Parr Tuttle, the description applies dramatically. For six years, Tuttle was chief judge of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which deals with such "Heart of Dixie" states as Mississippi and Alabama; under him that court has been a vital prod to civil rights.

When a lower-court judge ruled that 1,081 Negro children should be expelled from Birmingham schools for demonstrating, Judge Tuttle began hearing an appeal within six hours. Two days later he ordered the children reinstated immediately. In Americus, Ga., four civil rights workers were indicted on a variety of trumped-up charges; Judge Tuttle went to the town, convened a three-judge court on the spot, and freed the four. It was also Judge Tuttle who rebuffed Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett and told him firmly that the U.S. Supreme Court must be respected. Barnett had made the mistake of asking Tuttle to ignore the court and grant him a jury in a contempt trial that grew out of his role in the University of Mississippi riots.

Now 70, Tuttle has decided that the time has come to deactivate a bit. Some months ago, he stepped down as chief judge, and last week he retired from the court--though he will continue to hear occasional cases.

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