Full Text of SR1073 100th General Assembly
SR1073 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of William "Bill" Martin Jr., who passed | 4 | | away on July 7, 2017, at the age of 80; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin was born in Chicago on August 19, | 6 | | 1936; he grew up in Oak Park, where he lived most of his life; | 7 | | he attended St. Giles School and Fenwick High School, where he | 8 | | was active in the Blackfriars Guild theater club and became | 9 | | editor of the school paper, "The Wick", his junior year; he | 10 | | graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 1954 with a | 11 | | Bachelor of Science in Political Science and a minor in | 12 | | history; he received his Juris Doctor from the Loyola | 13 | | University Chicago School of Law in 1961, where he founded and | 14 | | edited the "Loyola Law Times" and was named Outstanding Law | 15 | | Student in 1961; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin began working in the state's | 17 | | attorney's office in 1962, where he gained a reputation for his | 18 | | low-key, professional personality in the courtroom; in 1968, he | 19 | | became chief of special prosecutions for the Cook County | 20 | | State's Attorney's office; he began practicing private law in | 21 | | 1970 and became a founding partner in the criminal defense firm | 22 | | Martin, Breen and Merrick; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin was assigned a case that was often | 2 | | called "the crime of the century" when he was appointed chief | 3 | | prosecutor in the Richard Speck murder case in 1996; the trial | 4 | | captured the nation's attention because of the random nature of | 5 | | the attack, thought to be the first of its kind; he | 6 | | successfully convinced the jury to give Speck the death penalty | 7 | | for his actions, though the ruling was later modified to a life | 8 | | sentence by the U.S. Supreme Court; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin is remembered as a teacher of the law | 10 | | and mentor to many young lawyers; he taught at Northwestern | 11 | | University School of Law as an assistant professor and taught | 12 | | constitutional law at Rosary College; in addition, he lectured | 13 | | on ethical and practical issues of the law; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin was also an avid writer and authored | 15 | | the 1993 book, "Crime of the Century: Richard Speck and the | 16 | | Murder of Eight Nurses", in order to preserve an accurate | 17 | | record of the Speck murder case; throughout his life, he | 18 | | published numerous essays in the "Chicago Daily Law Bulletin" | 19 | | and wrote many books reviews and legal stories; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin held a lifelong passion for ice | 21 | | hockey, which he played in his free time into his 70s; and
| 22 | | WHEREAS, Bill Martin is survived by his children, Marc W. |
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| 1 | | Martin, Patrick S. Martin, Colleen J. Martin, Victoria M. | 2 | | Silber, Douglas J. Martin, and Kelly B. McGinnis; and his | 3 | | grandchildren, Breanna and Marc Liam Martin, Owen and James | 4 | | Woo, and Logan, Kelin, Riley, and Lizzy Silber; therefore, be | 5 | | it
| 6 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL | 7 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 8 | | William Martin Jr., and extend our sincere condolences to his | 9 | | family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | 10 | | further
| 11 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 12 | | presented to the family of Bill Martin as an expression of our | 13 | | deepest sympathy.
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