Background
Hand, William Brevard was born on January 18, 1924 in Mobile, Alabama, United States. Son of Charles C. and Irma W. Hand.
Hand, William Brevard was born on January 18, 1924 in Mobile, Alabama, United States. Son of Charles C. and Irma W. Hand.
Bachelor of Science in Commerce and Business Administration, University Alabama, 1947. Juris Doctor, University Alabama, 1949. Doctor of Laws (honorary), University Mobile, 1990.
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Hand served from 1943 to 1946 in the United States Army during World World War World War II In 1949, he was awarded his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Alabama School of Law. He was in private practice in Mobile, Alabama from 1949 to 1971. Hand became involved in the Republican Party by 1962, when he supported James Doctorate. Martin of Gadsden for the United States. Senate against the veteran Democrat J. Lister Hill of Montgomery.
On July 26, 1971, Hand was nominated by United States. President Richard M. Nixon to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama vacated by Daniel H. Thomas.
Hand was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 21, 1971, and received his commission on September 22, 1971. He served as chief judge from 1981 to 1989 and assumed senior status on January 19, 1989.
In his 172-page ruling, he ordered the removal of forty-four texts across the state in subjects such as history and social studies. The case was brought in Hand"s district after his opinions regarding an 1982 school prayer ruling in Alabama.
The Eleventh Circuit Court unanimously reversed him, with Judge Frank stating that Hand held a "misconception of the relationship between church and state mandated by the establishment clause," commenting also that the textbooks did not show "an attitude antagonistic to theistic belief.
The message conveyed by these textbooks is one of neutrality: the textbooks neither endorse theistic religion as a system of belief, nor discr lieutenant"
Hand maintained senior status as a judge until his death in Mobile in 2008.
Chairman Mobile County Republican Executive Committee, 1968-1971. Served with United States Army, 1943-1946. Member American, Federal, Alabama, Mobile bar associations.
Married Allison Denby, June 17, 1948. Children: Jane Connor Hand Dukes, Virginia Alan Hand Hollis, Allison Hand Peebles.