John Paul Flaherty Jr.[1] (November 19, 1931 – February 20, 2019)[2][3] was a justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from 1978 to 2001 and chief justice of the Court from 1996 to 2001. He retired at the end of 2001.[4] His seat as Justice was filled by Michael Eakin.[4]
John P. Flaherty Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania | |
| In office 1996 – December 31, 2001 | |
| Preceded by | Robert N. C. Nix Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Ralph Cappy |
| Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania | |
| In office June 15, 1979 – December 31, 2001 | |
| Appointed by | Dick Thornburgh |
| Preceded by | Thomas Pomeroy |
| Succeeded by | Michael Eakin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 19, 1931 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Died | February 20, 2019 (aged 87) |
| Political party | Democratic |
In a highly controversial case while a trial judge, Judge Flaherty's November 16, 1978 findings on Paul Aitkenhead v. Borough of West View, No. GD-4585-78 in part state: "Over the course of five months, the court held periodic hearings, which consisted of extensive expert testimony from as far away as England. At issue was the most recent time-trend study of Dr. Burk and Dr. Yiamouyiannis, which compared cancer mortality in ten cities which fluoridated their water systems with ten cities which did not fluoridate over a period of twenty-eight years from 1940 to 1968. The study concluded that there was a significant increase in cancer mortality in the fluoridated cities."[citation needed]
Judge Flaherty remained convinced that fluoridation is a dangerous practice based on the scientific evidence and moreover that those who belittle opponents of fluoridation do the public a disservice. He agreed that fluoridation is a legislative and regulatory matter under U.S. laws that govern the practice.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ Who's Who in American Law, 1998-1999. Marquis Who's Who. 1998. p. 239.
- ^ Lynn S. McQuown, Pennsylvania, George Ehgartner (J.) (1993). The Pennsylvania Manual, Volume 111. Department of Property and Supplies for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. ISBN 9780818201776. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Obituary for John P. Flaherty, Jr". Neely Funeral Home. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
- ^ a b Jackson, Peter (November 7, 2001). "Eakin Ahead in Supreme Court Race". Beaver County Times.