Judge's Order To Get Appeal

The resource, an article from the University of Georgia’s Red and Black newspaper, discusses the legal steps of appeal for readmitting the first African American students into the University of Georgia after their suspension. The two students, Hunter Holmes and Charlayne Hunter, were suspended to protect them from the riots and violence that occured on campus following their admittance. The Federal Judge in the case, W.A. Bootle, was the central figure in the case as he ordered a “stay of the order to admit” the two students. Bootle explained his reasoning for the stay by stating that “every litigant has the legal right of appeal,” but failed to mention the state appropriations act severing funds to integrated universities. Bootle created the conditions for the appeal, seeking to postpone any progress in admitting the students. Attorneys for the students immediately motioned for the stay to be invalidated and allow the students to return to school. A hearing on the appeal was set to be held in Atlanta by Judge Elbert P. Tuttle of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The two student applicants awaited the results of the hearing back in Athens. State officials predicted a victory for the students, and on January 13, 1961, Bootle ordered the readmittance of both students to the university. Both Holmes and Hunter resumed classes, but still endured much distastefulness in their time at UGA. They both went on to graduate from the university and crafted successful careers following their graduation. The university’s academic building has been renamed to honor both students, the Holmes-Hunter Academic Building.