Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 544, a bill to designate the United States Courthouse at South Federal Place, Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the ``Santiago E. Campos United States…
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 544, a bill to designate the United States Courthouse at South Federal Place, Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the ``Santiago E. Campos United States Courthouse''.
I commend the Gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall) for his steadfast support of this bill to honor an outstanding jurist.
Mr. Udall introduced identical legislation in three previous Congresses--H.R. 5083 in the 107th Congress, H.R. 2274 in the 108th Congress, and H.R. 984 in the 109th Congress. Regrettably, the House never considered those bills. I am pleased that we are moving forward on this legislation today.
Santiago E. Campos was born on December 25, 1926, in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. He served in the United States Navy as a Seaman 1st Class from 1944 to 1946. After leaving the Navy, Judge Campos attended Central College in Fayette, Missouri, and received his law degree from the University of New Mexico in 1953, graduating first in his class.
From 1954 until 1957, he worked as an Assistant Attorney General and subsequently as First Assistant Attorney General for the State of New Mexico. After 14 years in private practice, Judge Campos was elected District Judge for the 1st Judicial District of New Mexico in 1971, and served in that capacity until 1978. In 1978, Judge Campos was appointed to the Federal Bench by President Jimmy Carter and began serving on July 20, 1978.
Judge Campos was the first Hispanic American to serve as a Federal Judge in the District Court of New Mexico, as well as the first Hispanic American to serve as its Chief Judge. He held the title of Chief U.S. District Judge from February 5, 1987, to December 31, 1989, and took senior status on December 26, 1992. Judge Campos died on January 20, 2002, after suffering a long bout with cancer.
During his career, Judge Campos was named an honorary member of the Order of the Coif. He also received the Distinguished Achievement Award of the State Bar of New Mexico in 1993, and in the same year the University of New Mexico honored him with a Distinguished Achievement Award.
H.R. 544 has received the unanimous endorsement of the Judges of the 10th Circuit Court in New Mexico and the district judges of the District of New Mexico.
In honor of Judge Campos's trailblazing legal career in New Mexico and his outstanding contributions to the legal profession, it is both fitting and proper to designate the courthouse located at South Federal Place in Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the ``Santiago E. Campos United States Courthouse''.
I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 544.