Edward Fox (judge)

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Edward Fox (June 10, 1815 – December 14, 1881) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine.

Edward Fox
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine
In office
May 31, 1866 – December 14, 1881
Appointed byAndrew Johnson
Preceded byAshur Ware
Succeeded byNathan Webb
Personal details
Born
Edward Fox

(1815-06-10)June 10, 1815
Portland, Maine
DiedDecember 14, 1881(1881-12-14) (aged 66)
Portland, Maine
EducationHarvard University
Harvard Law School

Education and career

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Born in Portland, Maine, Fox graduated from Harvard University in 1834, and from Harvard Law School in 1837. He practiced in Portland, and in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was city solicitor for Portland. He was the county attorney of Cumberland County, Maine.[1] He worked with Neal Dow to draft a prohibition law, which became known as the Maine Law after the state legislature approved it in 1851. Dow claimed credit for authoring the law, but his cousin John Neal revealed Fox's contribution in the press. That contribution was the search and seizure provision, which created a new legal standard for obtaining search warrants and contributed toward to the modern probable cause standard.[2] A decade later he was an associate justice of the Maine Supreme Court from 1862 to 1863.[1]

Federal judicial service

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On May 28, 1866, Fox was nominated by President Andrew Johnson to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Maine vacated by Judge Ashur Ware. Fox was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 30, 1866, and received his commission the next day. Fox served in this position until his death in Portland on December 14, 1881.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Edward Fox at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  2. ^ Oliver, Wesley (Fall 2008). "Portland, Prohibition, and Probable Cause: Maine's Role in Shaping Modern Criminal Procedure". Maine Bar Journal. 22 (4): 210–222.

Sources

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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine
1866–1881
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
1862–1863
Succeeded by

Daniel Goodenow