Eugene Lester

Eugene F. Lester was an American attorney and judge known as Chief Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court from 1931 - 1932.

Eugene F. Lester
Born(1871-08-07)August 7, 1871
Lebanon, Tennessee, U.S.
DiedJuly 25, 1940(1940-07-25) (aged 68)
Oklahoma City
Cause of deathgunshot due to suicide
NationalityAmerican
Other namesE. F. Lester
OccupationAttorney, Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court (1924-1931), Chief Justice, 1931-2
Years active1918-1932

Early life

Eugene F. Lester was born August 7, 1871 in Lebanon, Tennessee to Preston S. and Elizabeth (née Crutchfield). He became an attorney, moved to Oklahoma and became judge of the 5th Judicial District from 1918 to 1924. In 1924, he was named to the Oklahoma Supreme Court, where he served until 1931.[lower-alpha 1] He also served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 1931- 1932. He was a member of the Disciples of Christ church, Free Masons and Odd Fellows.[1]

While serving as Chief Justice, Lester represented Oklahoma in a University of North Carolina study that examined the practices of six state supreme courts in trying to be more efficient by sitting in divisions rather than en banc while hearing cases.[2][lower-alpha 2]

Death

A brief notice in Emporia, Kansas's Emporia Gazette stated that the Lester's body, was found in an Oklahoma City hotel room with a bullet wound to the head. A note in the room indicated that Lester took his own life on July 25, 1940, because of ill health. The acting coroner ruled the death a suicide, and gave no other details.[3]

His daughter, Doris Lester Burns, survived him. She died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the age of 86, on September 24, 1993, where she had lived for many years. Both her husband, Chester Parker Burns, and her mother, Beulah Collier Lester, had preceded her in death.[4]

Notes
  1. No source consulted has indicated that Lester had any formal law school training. Presumably, he qualified for the bar by reading law, a rather common practice, especially in the United States at that time.
  2. The states considered were: California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Virginia.[2]
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References
  1. E. F. Lester (b. 1871). "Disciples of Christ Politicians in Oklahoma." Political Graveyard. Accessed April 19, 2018.
  2. Sharp, Susie M. "Supreme Courts sitting in Divisions." North Carolina Law Review. Vol. 10, No. 4. 1932. Accesses April 20, 2018.
  3. "Former Oklahoma judge a suicide." Emporia Gazette (Emporia, Kansas) July 26, 1940. Accessed April 21, 2018.
  4. "Doris Lester Burns" (obituary). NewsOK. September 26, 1993. Accessed April 21, 2018.
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