THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:
JUDGE THOMAS "TAM" WILSON HAS PASSED AWAY .........
Thomas "Tam" S. Wilson, Jr. was born in Oregon in 1945. He studied at a small private college in Pennsylvania, and did a stint in the Navy, before attending UM law school graduating in 1971. He came from a long line of judges, including his father, a federal judge who decided labor cases. Another relative was the first federal judge in the Oregon Territory. And ancestor William Strong was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1870-1880, nominated by President Grant.
After "Tam" graduated from law school, he worked as an Assistant Public Defender for Phil Hubbart in the 1970s. He then became a prosecutor in the 1980s working for Janet Reno.
Judge Wilson's ambition to sit on the bench was finally realized in the summer of 1990 when Republican Gov. Bob Martinez appointed Wilson, a Democrat, as a Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge. In the 1990 election, his first, he ran against attorney Samuel Forman, beating Forman while garnering 52% of the vote. He was re-elected in 1996, 2002, and 2008, all unopposed. With his newest term beginning in January of 2009, he mysteriously resigned from the bench on October 15, 2009. County Court Judge Antonio Arzola was nominated by Governor Crist to replace him.
To give you an idea of how well respected Judge Wilson was on the bench, in his final DCBA Judicial Poll, out of 123 judges, he ranked in the top five in "exceptionally qualified" votes alongside Judges Kevin Emas, Joe Farina, Bob Scola, and Reemberto Diaz.
South Florida Lawyer did a goodbye story in 2009 and said of Judge Wilson, "I had many occasions to be in front of Judge Wilson, and have known him outside the courtroom for many years as well. While he didn’t always rule my way, he was and is smart, kind, highly professional, and by far one of the best judges on the circuit court civil bench. He will be missed."
Indeed, he will be missed.
CAPTAIN OUT .....
Captain4Justice@gmail.com