…I have never had the single aim of justice in view…Do equal justice is my motto, and I have often said to the grand jury, “permit no innocent man to be punished, but let no guilty man escape”. Judge Isaac Parker – 1896.
Isaac Charles Parker was born in Barnesville, Ohio in 1838. He was a smart kid with a reputation for honesty and hard work. His first job was teaching school. He developed a keen interest in the law and attached himself to a reputable law office where he “read the law” as it was known in those days. He then passed the Ohio bar exam at the age of 21 and began to practice law. Parker quickly became interested in politics and ran for congress as a Republican. He served two terms in the U.S. congress.
After serving in a number of judicial offices in Ohio, Parker solicited and received an appointment as a Federal District Judge. He was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant to serve as Federal Judge for the Western District of Arkansas and the entire Indian Territory – today we call it Oklahoma.
The office of Federal District Judge in Fort Smith was vacant when Parker went to assume the job. His predecessor had resigned because of scandal and corruption. Parker brought respect back to the office of the Federal Judge.
Judge Parker served 21 years on the bench. During that time he sentenced 160 people to death. Of those, 79 were eventually hanged. The rest either died in prison, escaped, or had their sentences reduced or commuted. Parker ordered the construction of a gallows in his courtyard which could accommodate the hanging of six criminals simultaneously. He ordered that six be hanged together on 3 September, 1875. One of the condemned was killed in an escape attempt and another had his death sentence commuted by the governor of Arkansas before the hanging date, so it was only a four man hanging.
Oddly enough, Judge Parker opposed capital punishment. He said he only imposed the penalty because “the law required it”. He often said, “the certainty of punishment is more important than the severity of punishment”.
During his tenure, Parker appointed Deputy Federal Marshal Bass Reeves. The first Black Deputy Federal Marshal West of the Mississippi
Regardless of the movie, Judge Parker never met Rooster Cogburn or Mattie Ross “from near Dardanelle in Yell County”.
Judge Parker died on 17 November, 1896. He died on the job. His friends said from overwork.
He is buried at Fort Smith National Cemetery in Fort Smith, Arkansas, not far from his courthouse.
Author: Staff
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