2011 Assembly Joint Resolution 60
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION
Relating to: the life and public service of Judge Terence T. Evans.
Whereas, Judge Terence T. Evans was born in 1940 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he was raised by his mother in the city's Riverwest neighborhood and rose to legal prominence from humble beginnings, and died on August 10, 2011; and
Whereas, Judge Evans ran track at Riverside High School and earned a track scholarship at Marquette University, where he won a national championship and the heart of Joan Witte, whom he married in 1965; and
Whereas, Judge Evans taught history at Milwaukee's North Division High School and coached track at Milwaukee's West Division High School before entering law school; and
Whereas, Judge Evans earned his degree in 1967 from Marquette University Law School, after which he served as a clerk for Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice Horace Wilkie for one year and then prosecuted cases as an assistant district attorney in Milwaukee County; and
Whereas, Judge Evans joined the Milwaukee law firm of Cooke & Franke in 1970 and became a partner in two years; and
Whereas, Governor Patrick Lucey appointed Judge Evans to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in 1974; and
Whereas, President Jimmy Carter selected Judge Evans for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in 1979, and President Bill Clinton appointed Judge Evans to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 1995; and
Whereas, Judge Evans continued to make Milwaukee his home even after being named to the federal appeals court in Chicago, travelling to Illinois when the appellate court was in session; and
Whereas, Judge Evans earned a reputation as a gifted jurist, with a no-nonsense but humane approach to legal matters, who had a way with words that made his opinions and the law accessible to everyone; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the
assembly, the senate concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin legislature commend the devoted and extraordinary public service Terence T. Evans contributed to his community, this state, and the nation, express their sorrow at his death, and extend their condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues; and, be it further
Resolved, That the assembly chief clerk shall provide a copy of this joint resolution to Judge Terence T. Evans's wife, Joan, and their children, Kelly Evans-Pfeifer, Christine Evans Wise, and David Evans.
