Louie Lee Wainwright (September 11, 1923 – December 23, 2021) was an American corrections administrator who served as Secretary of the

Florida Department of Corrections The Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) is the government agency responsible for operating state prisons in the U.S. state of Florida. It has its headquarters in the state capital of Tallahassee. The Florida Department of Corrections oper ...

from 1962 to 1987. He is known for having been the named

respondent A respondent is a person who is called upon to issue a response to a communication made by another. The term is used in legal contexts, in survey methodology, and in psychological conditioning. Legal usage In legal usage, this term specificall ...

in two

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

cases: ''

Gideon v. Wainwright ''Gideon v. Wainwright'', 372 U.S. 335 (1963), was a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark Supreme Court of the United States, U.S. Supreme Court decision in which the Court ruled that the Sixth Amendment to the United S ...

'' in which indigents are guaranteed an attorney, and '' Ford v. Wainwright'', in which the Court approved the

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

rule prohibiting the execution of the insane.

Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps as ''TIME'') is an American news magazine based in New York City. It was published weekly for nearly a century. Starting in March 2020, it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York Cit ...

called the ''Gideon'' decision one of the ten most important legal events of the 1960s. He also appeared as the respondent in a number of

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

petitions that reached the Supreme Court level during his tenure in office, making "Wainwright" one of the most familiar names to students of

law.

Biography

Born in Lawtey, Florida, Wainwright received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in criminal justice from

Nova Southeastern University Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a Private university, private research university in Florida with its main campus in Fort Lauderdale-Davie, Florida, Davie, Florida, United States. The university consists of 14 colleges, offering over ...

, later serving as a temporary faculty member there. He was then acknowledged as dean of American Correctional Administrators. Wainwright was appointed secretary of the Florida Division of Corrections by Cecil Farris Bryant (Florida Governor at that time) in 1962, replacing H. G. Cochran and remained in the position until 1987, when Richard L. Dugger assumed the role. Wainwright served under six governors: C. Farris Bryant, Haydon Burns, Claude Roy Kirk, Jr.,

Reubin Askew Reubin O'Donovan Askew (September 11, 1928 – March 13, 2014) was an American politician, who served as the 37th governor of Florida from 1971 to 1979. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 7th U.S. trade representative from 1979 ...

Bob Graham Daniel Robert Graham (November 9, 1936 – April 16, 2024) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 38th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987 and a United States Senate, United States senat ...

, and

Wayne Mixson John Wayne Mixson (June 16, 1922 – July 8, 2020) was an American politician, farmer, and Navy veteran who served as the 39th governor of Florida for three days in January 1987, after having served as the 12th lieutenant governor of Florida ...

. He received the

American Correctional Association The American Correctional Association (ACA; called the National Prison Association before 1954) is a private, non-profit, non-governmental trade association and accrediting body for the corrections industry, the oldest and largest such associati ...

's highest tribute, the E.R. Cass Award, for outstanding service, and his efforts in support of accreditation in Florida and nationwide earned him the 1986 Accreditation Achievement Award from the Commission of Accreditation for Corrections. Wainwright was appointed to the Corrections Foundation Board in 2001 and re-appointed president in 2003 and annually through 2016. He also served as president of the Florida Peace Officers' Association from 1965 to 1966, where he was still a prominent and respected member. He was once the superintendent of Avon Park Correctional Institution. His post, Secretary of the Florida Division of Corrections, replaced the post of Director of the Division of Corrections. Wainwright died in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of and the only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Fl ...

, on December 23, 2021, at the age of 98.

References

External links

Florida Supreme Court Briefs and Opinions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wainwright, Louie L. 1923 births 2021 deaths Nova Southeastern University alumni State cabinet secretaries of Florida People from Bradford County, Florida

Biography

See also

References

External links