James Nicholas Gabriel (February 26, 1923 – November 26, 1991) was an American lawyer and judge from

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Early life and education

He was born in Brooklyn, New York and graduated from

Cambridge Rindge and Latin School The Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, also known as "CRLS" or "Rindge", is a public high school in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. It is a part of the Cambridge Public School District. In 1977, two separate schools, Rindge Technical Sc ...

. He attended

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

for two years before enlisting in the military.World War II Army Enlistment Records, created 6/1/2002 - 9/30/2002, documenting the period ca. 1938 - 1946. - Record Group 64
/ref>Boston College Bulletin, Law, 1947
/ref> He graduated from

Boston College Law School Boston College Law School (BC Law) is the law school of Boston College, a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. It is situated on a campus in Newton, Massachusetts, about from the university's main campus in Chestn ...

with a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

in 1949. He later earned a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

from

New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...

Military service

He enlisted and served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Legal career

He was in private practice before working for the state government of Massachusetts. He served as an assistant attorney general for public works under

Massachusetts Attorneys General Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode Island to it ...

Edward Brooke Edward William Brooke III (October 26, 1919 – January 3, 2015) was an American lawyer and Republican Party politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1967 to 1979. He was the first African American elected to t ...

, Ed Martin, and

Elliot Richardson Elliot Lee Richardson (July 20, 1920December 31, 1999) was an American lawyer and Republican politician. As a member of the cabinets of Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford between 1970 and 1977, Richardson is one of two men in United States history ...

.A manual for the use of the General Court (1967)
/ref> He served as the

United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (in case citations, D. Mass.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose Jurisdiction (area), territorial jurisdiction is the Commonwealth (U.S. state), C ...

from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1973 to 1977. From 1977 to 1990 he was a

United States bankruptcy court United States bankruptcy courts are courts created under Article I of the United States Constitution. The current system of bankruptcy courts was created by the United States Congress in 1978, effective April 1, 1984. United States bankruptcy ...

judge for the District of Massachusetts. During his last four years on the bench he was the court's chief judge.

Political career

He is a former member of the Massachusetts Republican Committee. He is a former chairman of the Cambridge Republican City Committee and the Young Republican Club of Cambridge.

Personal life and death

He married Helen Rawan and the couple had five children. He died on November 26, 1991, in

Lexington, Massachusetts Lexington is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located 10 miles (16 km) from Downtown Boston. The population was 34,454 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The area was originally inhabited by ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gabriel, James 1923 births 1991 deaths Boston College Law School alumni Boston College alumni Massachusetts Republicans United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II New York University School of Law alumni People from Lexington, Massachusetts Judges of the United States bankruptcy courts 20th-century American judges United States attorneys for the District of Massachusetts 20th-century American lawyers