James Nelson
Judge James F. Nelson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | May 19, 1927 Los Angeles, California |
| Died | February 26, 2011 Pasadena, California |
| NSA member | USA 1977 - 1999 |
| Spouse(s) | Dorothy Nelson |
Judge James Frank Nelson (May 19, 1927 - February 26, 2011) was an American Bahá'í who served on the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States for many years. He also served as Chairman of the Regional Council for the Bahá'ís of the Western States.
In his career James was a Judge, most notably serving on the Los Angeles Municipal Court. High profile cases he was involved with were preliminary hearings of serial killer Richard Ramirez and the case of the death of John Belushi. In addition to his Court service over the years James also served as a member of the California Commission on Judicial Performance at the California Judicial College, and as a lecturer on Law on Oil and Gas Leasing at the University of Southern California.
Biography[edit]
Judge Nelson was born in Los Angeles in 1927. He joined the Navy in 1945 before graduating High School, attending the graduation in his Navy uniform. He attended Stanford University for officer training but after meeting Dorothy at a YMCA camp he transferred to UCLA in 1946 so he could attend the same school as her. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1950 and married Dorothy, then served in the Navy Reserve.
In 1953 James completed a law degree at Loyola University. He became a Bahá'í in 1954 and the same year he began work as deputy district attorney of Los Angeles County. He served in the position until 1957 when he entered private practice. In 1965 he began working as a Juvenile Court Referee. Also in 1965 he chaired a Bahá'í meeting for the public in Temple City, California, at which the Bahá'í view on human rights was discussed,[1] and he and Dorothy showed slides of the World Center at Big Bear Lake Summer School.[2] In 1967 he began working as Judge Pro Tempore for the Los Angeles Superior Court. Ronald Reagan appointed him as a Judge on the Los Angeles Municipal Court in 1968.
In 1972 James chaired a public meeting held by the Bahá'ís of Los Angeles County to commemorate Human Rights Day at which awards were given to individuals in the County who had been of service to mankind.[3] In 1974 James and Dorothy spoke at the International Bahá'í Youth Conference in Hawaii on A New Era in Justice.[4] In 1975 James opened a Bahá'í Family Life Conference held in San Francisco.[5] In 1975 the Nelsons represented the Faith at a World Peace Through Law Conference.[6] In 1977 James was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly.
By 1980 James was Chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly,[7] and in 1980 he served as Presiding Judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court. In 1982 he participated in the Seventh Bahá'í Studies Conference with Dorothy, delivering a joint talk on the Bahá'í perspective on law, language, and ethics.[8] In 1985 the Nelsons were apart of a Bahá'í delegation to an International Conference on Religious Liberty co-sponsored by the U.S. State Department.[9] In December 1985 James acted as spokesperson at a ceremony at which President Ronald Reagan was presented with The Promise of World Peace, the Universal House of Justice's peace statement.[10]
In 1989 Judge Nelson retired from the Los Angeles Municipal Court, although he occasionally worked as a Superior Court judge up until 1993. By 1990 James was serving as Vice-Chair of the National Assembly.[11] He served on the body until 1999.
James passed away in the presence of family in 2011 following a family party. He had suffered a stroke a few years earlier.
Family[edit]
James wife Dorothy also had a successful legal career, serving on the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and as Dean of the School of Law at the University of Southern California,[12] and was also a long-serving member of the National Assembly. They had a daughter, Lorna, and son, Frank.
Talks[edit]
- c. 1980s - Bahá’í Elections: A New and Peaceful Model of Election - Interview for Transforming Human Consciousness
- c. 1980s - Cafeteria Complex & Bahá’í Laws
- 1982 - Natural Law Revisited
- 1983 - Role of Religion
- 1988 - Reflections of a Baha'i Judge
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ Baha'i News (1965). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 407, Pg(s) 5. View as PDF.
- ↑ Bahá'í News, No. 415, p 11
- ↑ Bahá'í News, No. 494, p 6
- ↑ Baha'i News (1974). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 521, Pg(s) 16. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1975). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 528, Pg(s) 12. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1977). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 561, Pg(s) 14. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1980). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 590, Pg(s) 17. View as PDF.
- ↑ Bahá'í News, No. 620, p 12
- ↑ Baha'i News (1985). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 652, Pg(s) 2. View as PDF.
- ↑ Bahá'í News, No. 658, p 6
- ↑ Baha'i News (1990). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 709, Pg(s) 5. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1974). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 521, Pg(s) 16. View as PDF.
