HR0667 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0667 LRB095 12969 GRL 38604 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Ellis E. Reid III of Chicago, who passed away on August 7, 2007; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III was born in Bronzeville and grew up in Woodlawn and Park Manor; he graduated from Englewood High School, then attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he received his bachelor's degree in 1956; and he received his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 1959; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III was a well-known and respected attorney and judge throughout the Chicago area; he successfully prosecuted the case against former State's Attorney Edward Hanrahan and police officers accused of wrongdoing in a raid that left two Black Panthers dead; in 1970, he successfully argued in federal court to overturn a Chicago ordinance which prevented women from making drinks unless they had a liquor license or were related to someone who did; he served as a judge in the Cook County Circuit Court's 1st Municipal District in Chicago from 1985 to 2000; he also served as a Justice in the Illinois Appellate Court, 1st District, 5th Division from 2000 to 2004, serving as the court's presiding justice from 2004 to 2005; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III also represented various organizations; among them, he served as General Counsel to Local 453 of the United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO from 1960 to 1972; he served as General Counsel to Local 1006 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO from 1976 to 1983; and he was a member of and served as long-time General Counsel to the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III was involved with many law-based organizations, including the Illinois Judges Association, the Appellate Lawyers Association, the National Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, and the Chicago Inn of Court; he was a former President of the Illinois Judicial Council; and he was a former President of the Cook County Bar Association, the first African-American bar association in the country; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III had an intense love of the law and had an interest in mentoring young law students; and

WHEREAS, Ellis E. Reid III is by survived his wife, Sheila; his sons, Ellis E. Reid IV and David Reid; his daughter, Noelle; his siblings, Betty Baugh, Virginia Nichols, and Harry Reid; and his four grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Ellis E. Reid III; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Ellis E. Reid III as an expression of our sympathy.