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{{Short description|American judge (1927–2024)}}
⚫
'''Burrell Ives Humphreys''' (born 1927 in [[Camden, New Jersey]]) is a former [[New Jersey Courts|New Jersey Superior Court]] judge and [[county prosecutor]]. He was in charge of the second murder trial of [[Rubin Carter]], which resulted in Carter's conviction in December 1976.
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Burrell Ives Humphreys
|image =
|alt =
|caption =
|birth_name =
|birth_date = {{birth date|1927|5|18}}
|birth_place = [[Camden, New Jersey]], U.S.
|death_date = {{death date and age|2024|9|19|1927|5|18}}
|death_place =
|nationality =
|education = [[Dickinson College]], [[Temple Law School]]
|party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
|occupation = Prosecutor, judge
|spouse = Joy Strong (m. 1950)
|children = 3
}}

⚫
'''Burrell Ives Humphreys''' (May 18, 1927 – September 19, 2024) was an American judge on the [[New Jersey Superior Court]] and [[county prosecutor]]. He was the lead prosecutor in the second murder trial of [[Rubin Carter]], which resulted in Carter's conviction in December 1976.


==Early career==
==Early career==
He attended [[Dickinson College]] graduating in 1950, [[Temple Law School]], graduating in 1953, and was admitted to the bar in 1954. He clerked for [[Richard Hartshorne (judge)|Richard Hartshorne]] of the [[United States District Court for the District of New Jersey]]. In private practice he was an associate at a firm in [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]] and then a partner at Hoffman & Humphreys in [[Wayne, New Jersey|Wayne]]. In the 1960s he worked as hearing examiner for civil rights in the state Attorney General's office. He was opposed the [[Vietnam War]] and became a member of the [[NAACP]].<ref name="nyt070879">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/07/08/archives/new-jersey-weekly-an-outfront-prosecutor-interview.html|title=An Out‐Front Prosecutor|work=New York Times|publisher=July 8, 1979|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref>
Humphreys was born in [[Camden, New Jersey]], and raised in [[Merchantville, New Jersey]]. He graduated from [[Merchantville High School]].<ref name=Newsday1950>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101370267/marriage-of-strong-humphreys/ "Humphreys-Strong Nuptials in Sayville Church"], ''[[Newsday]]'', January 5, 1951. Accessed May 8, 2022, via [[Newspapers.com]]. "Miss Joy Christina Strong, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Roland Strong of Collins Ave., Sayville, became the bride 4 PM Saturday of Burrell Ives Humphreys, son of Mr. and Mrs. Louis B. Humphreys of E. Maple Ave., Merchantville, N.J., in the Sayville Methodist Church, the Rev. John F. Protheroe pastor officiating.&nbsp;... Her husband is an alumnus of Merchantvjlle High School, Dickinson College and is attending Temple Law School in Philadelphia."</ref> He attended [[Dickinson College]], graduating in 1950, [[Temple Law School]], graduating in 1953, and was admitted to the bar in 1954.<ref name="lawyer">{{cite web|url=https://www.lawyer.com/burrell-humphreys.html|title=Burrell Ives Humphreys, Attorney|work=lawyer.com|access-date=January 6, 2022}}</ref> He clerked for [[Richard Hartshorne (judge)|Richard Hartshorne]] of the [[United States District Court for the District of New Jersey]].<ref name="lawyer"/> In private practice he was an associate at a firm in [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]] and then a partner at Hoffman & Humphreys in [[Wayne, New Jersey|Wayne]].<ref name="lawyer"/> In the 1960s he worked as hearing examiner for civil rights in the state Attorney General's office. He opposed the [[Vietnam War]] and became a member of the [[NAACP]].<ref name="nyt070879">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/07/08/archives/new-jersey-weekly-an-outfront-prosecutor-interview.html|title=An Out‐Front Prosecutor|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=July 8, 1979|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref>


==Prosecutor==
==Prosecutor==
A Democrat, he became the Passaic County Prosecutor in June 1975, appointed by New Jersey Governor [[Brendan Byrne]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/06/13/archives/passaic-prosecutor-plans-a-shakeup.html|title=Passaic Prosecutor Plans a Shake‐up|date=June 13, 1975|work=New York Times|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref> In March 1976 the [[New Jersey Supreme Court]] overturned the 1967 murder conviction of [[Rubin Carter|Rubin "Hurricane" Carter]], and Humphreys announced immediately that he would retry the case.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/03/18/archives/rubin-carter-and-artis-get-new-trial-in-murder-case-jersey-supreme.html|title=Rubin Carter and Artis Get New Trial in Murder Case|date=March 18, 1976|work=New York Times|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref> Alfred Bello and Arthur Bradley had recanted their testimony, so Humphreys focused on Eddie Rawls, saying he was "all over this case."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/columnists/mike-kelly/2019/06/17/rubin-carter-john-artis-what-really-happened-night/1419996001/|title=Archive: Doubts, errors, unknowns still haunt the case of 'Hurricane' Carter, John Artis|date=June 17, 2019|work=northjersey.com|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref>Humphreys had offered to dismiss the charge against Carter if he took a second [[polygraph test]] conducted by an independent administrator, but Carter declined.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://old.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20000327newsmaker3.asp|title=Newsmaker / Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter: Film of his life a contender|date=March 27, 2000|work=Pittsburg Post-Gazette|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref> Carter was convicted again in December 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/12/22/archives/rubin-carter-is-convicted-with-artis-in-3-murders-passaic-county.html|title=Rubin Carter Is Convicted With Artis in 3 Murders|date=Dec 22, 1976|work=New York Times|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref>The verdict was upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1982 but was set aside by a judge of [[United States District Court for the District of New Jersey]] in 1985.
A Democrat, Humphreys became the Passaic County Prosecutor in June 1975, appointed by New Jersey Governor [[Brendan Byrne]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/06/13/archives/passaic-prosecutor-plans-a-shakeup.html|title=Passaic Prosecutor Plans a Shake‐up|date=June 13, 1975|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> In March 1976 the [[New Jersey Supreme Court]] overturned the 1967 conviction of two black men, [[Rubin Carter|Rubin "Hurricane" Carter]] and John Artis, for a triple murder of three white victims in a bar in [[Paterson, New Jersey|Paterson]]. The court ruled that the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office had withheld key details from the defense. Humphreys announced immediately that he would retry the case.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/03/18/archives/rubin-carter-and-artis-get-new-trial-in-murder-case-jersey-supreme.html|title=Rubin Carter and Artis Get New Trial in Murder Case|date=March 18, 1976|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref>

Before the retrial started Humphreys offered to dismiss the charge against Carter if he took a new [[polygraph]] test conducted by an independent administrator, but Carter declined.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://old.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20000327newsmaker3.asp|title=Newsmaker / Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter: Film of his life a contender|date=March 27, 2000|work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> Humphreys personally prosecuted the case, and ensured that unlike the all-white jury in the first trial, the second jury had two black jurors.<ref name="exon">{{cite web|url=https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetailpre1989.aspx?caseid=408|title=The National Registry of Exonerations pre 1989: Rubin Carter|work=University of Michigan Law School|access-date=January 6, 2022}}</ref> Humphreys focused on the "racial revenge theory" surrounding suspect Eddie Rawls, a black man whose stepfather had been murdered at a different bar earlier the same night. At the trial Humphreys said Rawls was "all over this case" and obtained a court order to see if Rawls had hidden the murder weapons in his stepfather's coffin.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/columnists/mike-kelly/2019/06/17/rubin-carter-john-artis-what-really-happened-night/1419996001/|title=Archive: Doubts, errors, unknowns still haunt the case of 'Hurricane' Carter, John Artis|date=June 17, 2019|work=northjersey.com|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> Humphreys obtained a polygraph for key witness Arthur Bello, who had recanted his testimony in 1974, but who Humphreys still wanted to use as a witness.<ref name="bello">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/05/26/archives/carter-and-artis-ask-for-reversal-contending-that-prosecution-lied.html|title=Carter and Artis Ask for Reversal, Contending That Prosecution Lied|date=May 26, 1978|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 6, 2022}}</ref> To the surprise of the defense, Bello took the stand and recanted his recantation, identifying Carter and Artis once again.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,947825-1,00.html|title=Milestones: Rubin Carter: Counted Out Again|date=January 3, 1977|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |access-date=January 13, 2022}}</ref>

Carter and Artis were convicted again of three counts of first degree murder in December 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/12/22/archives/rubin-carter-is-convicted-with-artis-in-3-murders-passaic-county.html|title=Rubin Carter Is Convicted With Artis in 3 Murders|date=December 22, 1976|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> Carter and Artis's lawyers filed an appeal motion in 1978, saying they had been misled by the prosecution over Bello's polygraph test. Humphreys responded by saying Carter and Artis had received "an eminently fair trial".<ref name="bello"/> The verdict was upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1982 but was set aside by federal judge [[H. Lee Sarokin]] of the [[United States District Court for the District of New Jersey]] in 1985.<ref name="exon"/> Sarokin criticized the racial revenge theory, writing that "the jury was permitted to draw inferences of guilt based solely upon the race of (the defendants)."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/200c792daf2fe25aca3235a6791655ad|title=Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter's Conviction Overturned, Hearing Set On Release|date=November 7, 1985|work=AP News|access-date=January 6, 2022}}</ref>


As a prosecutor Humphreys was philosophically opposed to the death penalty, although he said he could be in favor if it was proved to have a significant reduction in the crime rate.<ref name="nyt070879"/>
As a prosecutor Humphreys was philosophically opposed to the death penalty, although he said he could be in favor if it was proved to have a significant reduction in the crime rate.<ref name="nyt070879"/>


==Superior Court judge==
==Superior Court judge==
In 1980 Humphreys became an [[New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division|Appellate Court]] judge and he later served as Assignment Judge of the Essex and Hudson vicinages. In 1986 he dismissed a suit brought by New Jersey residents challenging New York State's jurisdiction over [[Liberty Island]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/30/nyregion/bridge-decisions-by-a-jersey-judge-get-some-second-guessing.html|title=Bridge: Decisions by a Jersey Judge Get Some Second-Guessing|date=June 30, 1986|work=New York Times|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-10-05-mn-22509-story.html|title=Statue of Liberty a Legal New Yorker, Supreme Court Says|date=October 5, 1987|work=LA Times|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref> In 1982 he ruled that the [[Hoboken]] Homeless Shelter could continue to operate as Hoboken's housing laws violated the principle of churches being able to offer shelter. He served as the Presiding Judge of the Chancery Division in Passaic County. After his retirement as a judge in 2007 he became counsel at Williams, Caliri, Miller & Otley, P.C.
In 1980 Humphreys became an [[New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division|Appellate Court]] judge.<ref name="lawyer"/> In 1982 he ruled that the [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]] Homeless Shelter could continue to operate as Hoboken's housing laws violated the principle of churches being able to offer shelter.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://patch.com/new-jersey/hoboken/the-history-of-the-homeless-shelter-is-the-story-of-hoboken|title=The History of the Homeless Shelter is the Story of Hoboken|date=May 3, 2012|work=[[Patch (website)|patch.com]]|access-date=January 6, 2022}}</ref> In 1986 he dismissed a suit brought by New Jersey residents challenging New York State's jurisdiction over [[Liberty Island]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/30/nyregion/bridge-decisions-by-a-jersey-judge-get-some-second-guessing.html|title=Bridge: Decisions by a Jersey Judge Get Some Second-Guessing|date=June 30, 1986|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-10-05-mn-22509-story.html|title=Statue of Liberty a Legal New Yorker, Supreme Court Says|date=October 5, 1987|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> He served as assignment judge of the Essex and Hudson vicinages, and the presiding judge of the Chancery Division in [[Passaic County, New Jersey|Passaic County]].<ref name="lawyer"/> After his retirement as a judge in 2007 he became counsel at Williams, Caliri, Miller & Otley, P.C.<ref name="lawyer"/>


==Personal life==
==Personal life and death==
Humphreys married Joy Strong in 1950, having met her at Dickinson College.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/northjersey/name/joy-humphreys-obituary?id=21454377|title=Obituaries: Joy Humphries|date=August 15, 2012|work=The Record|access-date=4 January 2022}}</ref> They lived in [[Wayne, New Jersey|Wayne]] and had three children.<ref name="nyt070879"/> Following her death in 2012 he moved to a retirement community in [[Pompton Plains]].
Humphreys married Joy Strong in December 1950, having met her at Dickinson College.<ref name=Newsday1950/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/northjersey/name/joy-humphreys-obituary?id=21454377|title=Obituaries: Joy Humphries|date=August 15, 2012|work=The Record|access-date=January 4, 2022}}</ref> They were both tournament [[bridge (game)|bridge]] players.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/26/nyregion/bridge-the-judge-was-surprised-but-his-wife-knew-better.html|title=Bridge: The Judge Was Surprised, But His Wife Knew Better|date=January 26, 1983|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 13, 2022}}</ref> They had three children,<ref name="nyt070879"/> and lived in [[Wayne, New Jersey|Wayne]] until her death in 2012.

Humphreys died on September 19, 2024, at the age of 97.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://obits.nj.com/us/obituaries/starledger/name/burrell-humphreys-obituary?id=56395328|title=Obituaries - Burrell Ives Humphreys|date=September 26, 2024|work=New Jersey Star Ledger|access-date=October 9, 2024}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Humphreys, Burrell Ives}}
[[Category:1927 births]]
[[Category:2024 deaths]]
[[Category:21st-century American judges]]
[[Category:New Jersey Democrats]]
[[Category:New Jersey state court judges]]
[[Category:People from Camden, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from Merchantville, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from Wayne, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Temple University Beasley School of Law alumni]]

Latest revision as of 03:50, 17 November 2024

Burrell Ives Humphreys
Born(1927-05-18)May 18, 1927
Camden, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedSeptember 19, 2024(2024-09-19) (aged 97)
EducationDickinson College, Temple Law School
Occupation(s)Prosecutor, judge
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseJoy Strong (m. 1950)
Children3

Burrell Ives Humphreys (May 18, 1927 – September 19, 2024) was an American judge on the New Jersey Superior Court and county prosecutor. He was the lead prosecutor in the second murder trial of Rubin Carter, which resulted in Carter's conviction in December 1976.

Early career

[edit]

Humphreys was born in Camden, New Jersey, and raised in Merchantville, New Jersey. He graduated from Merchantville High School.[1] He attended Dickinson College, graduating in 1950, Temple Law School, graduating in 1953, and was admitted to the bar in 1954.[2] He clerked for Richard Hartshorne of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.[2] In private practice he was an associate at a firm in Newark and then a partner at Hoffman & Humphreys in Wayne.[2] In the 1960s he worked as hearing examiner for civil rights in the state Attorney General's office. He opposed the Vietnam War and became a member of the NAACP.[3]

Prosecutor

[edit]

A Democrat, Humphreys became the Passaic County Prosecutor in June 1975, appointed by New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne.[4] In March 1976 the New Jersey Supreme Court overturned the 1967 conviction of two black men, Rubin "Hurricane" Carter and John Artis, for a triple murder of three white victims in a bar in Paterson. The court ruled that the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office had withheld key details from the defense. Humphreys announced immediately that he would retry the case.[5]

Before the retrial started Humphreys offered to dismiss the charge against Carter if he took a new polygraph test conducted by an independent administrator, but Carter declined.[6] Humphreys personally prosecuted the case, and ensured that unlike the all-white jury in the first trial, the second jury had two black jurors.[7] Humphreys focused on the "racial revenge theory" surrounding suspect Eddie Rawls, a black man whose stepfather had been murdered at a different bar earlier the same night. At the trial Humphreys said Rawls was "all over this case" and obtained a court order to see if Rawls had hidden the murder weapons in his stepfather's coffin.[8] Humphreys obtained a polygraph for key witness Arthur Bello, who had recanted his testimony in 1974, but who Humphreys still wanted to use as a witness.[9] To the surprise of the defense, Bello took the stand and recanted his recantation, identifying Carter and Artis once again.[10]

Carter and Artis were convicted again of three counts of first degree murder in December 1976.[11] Carter and Artis's lawyers filed an appeal motion in 1978, saying they had been misled by the prosecution over Bello's polygraph test. Humphreys responded by saying Carter and Artis had received "an eminently fair trial".[9] The verdict was upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1982 but was set aside by federal judge H. Lee Sarokin of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey in 1985.[7] Sarokin criticized the racial revenge theory, writing that "the jury was permitted to draw inferences of guilt based solely upon the race of (the defendants)."[12]

As a prosecutor Humphreys was philosophically opposed to the death penalty, although he said he could be in favor if it was proved to have a significant reduction in the crime rate.[3]

Superior Court judge

[edit]

In 1980 Humphreys became an Appellate Court judge.[2] In 1982 he ruled that the Hoboken Homeless Shelter could continue to operate as Hoboken's housing laws violated the principle of churches being able to offer shelter.[13] In 1986 he dismissed a suit brought by New Jersey residents challenging New York State's jurisdiction over Liberty Island.[14][15] He served as assignment judge of the Essex and Hudson vicinages, and the presiding judge of the Chancery Division in Passaic County.[2] After his retirement as a judge in 2007 he became counsel at Williams, Caliri, Miller & Otley, P.C.[2]

Personal life and death

[edit]

Humphreys married Joy Strong in December 1950, having met her at Dickinson College.[1][16] They were both tournament bridge players.[17] They had three children,[3] and lived in Wayne until her death in 2012.

Humphreys died on September 19, 2024, at the age of 97.[18]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Humphreys-Strong Nuptials in Sayville Church", Newsday, January 5, 1951. Accessed May 8, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Miss Joy Christina Strong, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Roland Strong of Collins Ave., Sayville, became the bride 4 PM Saturday of Burrell Ives Humphreys, son of Mr. and Mrs. Louis B. Humphreys of E. Maple Ave., Merchantville, N.J., in the Sayville Methodist Church, the Rev. John F. Protheroe pastor officiating. ... Her husband is an alumnus of Merchantvjlle High School, Dickinson College and is attending Temple Law School in Philadelphia."
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Burrell Ives Humphreys, Attorney". lawyer.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "An Out‐Front Prosecutor". The New York Times. July 8, 1979. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  4. ^ "Passaic Prosecutor Plans a Shake‐up". The New York Times. June 13, 1975. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "Rubin Carter and Artis Get New Trial in Murder Case". The New York Times. March 18, 1976. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  6. ^ "Newsmaker / Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter: Film of his life a contender". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. March 27, 2000. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "The National Registry of Exonerations pre 1989: Rubin Carter". University of Michigan Law School. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  8. ^ "Archive: Doubts, errors, unknowns still haunt the case of 'Hurricane' Carter, John Artis". northjersey.com. June 17, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "Carter and Artis Ask for Reversal, Contending That Prosecution Lied". The New York Times. May 26, 1978. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  10. ^ "Milestones: Rubin Carter: Counted Out Again". Time. January 3, 1977. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  11. ^ "Rubin Carter Is Convicted With Artis in 3 Murders". The New York Times. December 22, 1976. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  12. ^ "Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter's Conviction Overturned, Hearing Set On Release". AP News. November 7, 1985. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  13. ^ "The History of the Homeless Shelter is the Story of Hoboken". patch.com. May 3, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  14. ^ "Bridge: Decisions by a Jersey Judge Get Some Second-Guessing". The New York Times. June 30, 1986. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  15. ^ "Statue of Liberty a Legal New Yorker, Supreme Court Says". Los Angeles Times. October 5, 1987. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  16. ^ "Obituaries: Joy Humphries". The Record. August 15, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  17. ^ "Bridge: The Judge Was Surprised, But His Wife Knew Better". The New York Times. January 26, 1983. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  18. ^ "Obituaries - Burrell Ives Humphreys". New Jersey Star Ledger. September 26, 2024. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
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