Rose Bird
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Rose Elizabeth Bird (November 2, 1936 – December 4, 1999) was the 25th Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court. She was the first female law clerk of the Nevada Supreme Court, the first female deputy public defender in Santa Clara County, the first woman to serve in the California State Cabinet, and the first female Chief Justice of California. She was also notable as the first, and to date only, Chief Justice in California history to lose a retention election.


Early life and education

Bird was born near
Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
, on November 2, 1936. Her father, Harry Bird, was the grandson of English immigrants and her mother, Anne (née Walsh), was
Irish American Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry. Irish immigration to the United States From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...
. She had two older brothers. Her father deserted the family and died when she was five. Her mother moved the family to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, where Bird and her brothers grew up in poverty. She was a standout scholar in high school and won a scholarship to Long Island University, where she earned her bachelor's degree
magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
. She later graduated from the
UC Berkeley School of Law The University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Berkeley Law) is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of California, Berkeley. The school was commonly referred to as "Boalt Hall" for many years, although it was ...
(Boalt Hall) in 1965.


Legal and political career

After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Bird became the first female
law clerk A law clerk, judicial clerk, or judicial assistant is a person, often a lawyer, who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by Legal research, researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial ...
in the Supreme Court of Nevada. Between 1966 and 1974, she held the positions of deputy public defender, senior trial deputy, and chief of the appellate division at the Santa Clara County Public Defender's Office. She taught at
Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (SLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Stanford University, a Private university, private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, Stanford Law had an acceptance rate of 6.28% i ...
from 1972 to 1974. She volunteered with Jerry Brown's 1974 campaign for governor, and became a trusted advisor. After Brown won the election, he appointed Bird to the position of Secretary of Agriculture. In February 1977, Governor Brown appointed Bird as Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court.


Chief Justice of California


Tenure

Bird's tenure on the Supreme Court was controversial. She drew opposition due to her strongly liberal views, lack of judicial experience, and temperament. Bird was also controversial among the Associate Justices on her court. In a 1998 oral history interview, fellow liberal Stanley Mosk said that Bird was a bright and articulate lawyer, but a terrible administrator (one of the Chief Justice's major responsibilities). Mosk claims Bird required the Associate Justices to make appointments to talk to her for any reason.


Noted opinions

Bird's opposition to the death penalty was reflexive. She reviewed a total of 65 capital cases appealed to the court. In every instance, she issued a decision overturning the death penalty that had been imposed at trial, including that of serial killer Rodney Alcala. She was joined by at least three of the seven members of the court in 61 of those cases. In 1981, Bird ruled that the State Constitution required that the state provide free abortions for poor women. In 1982, Bird argued in dissent that the proposed California Proposition 8, known as the Victims' Bill of Rights, should not be allowed on the ballot. In 1984, Bird and a majority of the court granted the
American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutual ...
's 1984 original petition to block a balanced budget amendment proposition from appearing on the ballot.


1978 retention

Bird was first subject to a retention election in 1978. A campaign was waged against her, to which she did not respond. On election day, it was charged that the court decided to withhold the publication of a controversial ruling until after the 1978 vote. The ensuing controversy generated considerable press coverage but, by then, Bird had been retained by a 52% to 48% margin.


1986 removal

In 1985, Bird said in interviews that opposition to her rulings was based on sexism, bigotry, and right-wing ideology led by U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese. She said, "These are bully boys. Meese is trying it on the Supreme Court." Many Democrats later conceded that the remarks backfired on her and other members of the court appointed by Governor Brown. Her rulings and public statements led Bird's critics to claim that she was substituting her personal opinions and ideas for the law. The anti-Bird campaign ran television commercials featuring the surviving families of murder victims, whose murderers' sentences Bird and her fellow Justices Cruz Reynoso, Joseph Grodin, and Allen Broussard had voted to reverse.Joseph R. Grodin
''In Pursuit of Justice: Reflections of a State Supreme Court Justice''
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991), 178–79.
In addition to Bird, Reynoso and Grodin were also voted off the seven-justice California state supreme court bench. Bird was removed in the November 4, 1986 election by a margin of 67% to 33%.Lindsey, Robert.

, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', November 6, 1986, sec. A, p. 30.
Justice Stanley Mosk, who often joined Bird, Reynoso, and Grodin, was not challenged. Twelve years later, Mosk explained why he was able to stay and Bird was not: As a result of the 1986 election, Governor George Deukmejian elevated Malcolm M. Lucas to Chief Justice and appointed three new associate justices. The Lucas Court moved toward a more business-friendly and pro-law enforcement judicial philosophy.Culver, John H. "The transformation of the California Supreme Court: 1977–1997." ''Albany Law Review'' 61, no. 5 (Mid-Summer 1998): pp. 1461–90.


Death

Bird died on December 4, 1999, at Stanford University Medical Center from complications of
breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...
, which she had fought on and off since 1976. She was 63 years old.


Legacy

Bird was the first and remains the only Chief Justice to be removed from that office by a majority of the state's voters. Prior to Bird, no California appellate judge had ever failed such a vote.Chen, Edwin. "California court fight; Bird runs for her life." ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
'', 18 Jan 1986, pp. 43–46.
After her death, the California Public Defender's Association and California Women Lawyers Association established awards in her honor.
New York Law School New York Law School (NYLS) is a private, American law school in the Tribeca neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City. The third oldest law school in New York City, its history predates its official founding in 1891 by Theodore William Dwight, T ...
annually awards one graduating student the Chief Justice Rose E. Bird Award for Motivation in Pursuing Public Interest Law.


In popular culture

In 1984, Bird appeared as a family court judge in an episode of the television series '' Pryor's Place.'' In 1987, Bird appeared as a judge on the scripted television program called ''
Superior Court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...
.''


See also

* List of justices of the Supreme Court of California * List of female state supreme court justices * List of first women lawyers and judges in California


References


Further reading

*


External links


Californians to Defeat Rose Bird, 1985-1986. Collection guide, California State Library, California History Room.

Text of speeches given in memory of Rose Bird by Justices of the California Supreme Court, from California Supreme Court Historical Society (with high-quality photo of Justice Bird)

Detailed Profile of decision


California State Courts. Retrieved July 19, 2017. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Rose 1936 births 1999 deaths 20th-century California state court judges Women chief justices of state supreme courts in the United States Chief justices of California Jerry Brown Long Island University alumni UC Berkeley School of Law alumni Deaths from breast cancer in California Women in California politics Stanford Law School faculty Politicians from New York City Politicians from Tucson, Arizona Public defenders Lawyers from New York City 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century California politicians Lawyers from Tucson, Arizona American women legal scholars American legal scholars 20th-century American women judges 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American women