Dalton A. Roberson Sr.
Retired longtime Third Circuit Judge Dalton A. Roberson Sr., passed away November 10. He was 83 and had recently been diagnosed with COVID-19.
Roberson was born in Mount Vernon, Alabama, on May 11, 1937. After graduating from Mobile Training School in Mobile, Alabama, he moved to Detroit to seek work. He served as a boom operator in the United States Air Force and after he was honorably discharged, he earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, where he became a member of the Delta Pi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. After a stint with the Michigan Department of Social Services, he earned a law degree from what was then known as Detroit College of Law in 1967. That same year, he married Pearl Janet Stephens.
After law school, he served as an assistant Wayne County prosecutor and assistant U.S. attorney before founding a law firm with Robert Harrison and Bernard Friedman. From 1972 until 1974, he served as a member of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission and the Sentencing Community Alternative Commission.
He was appointed to what was then known as the Detroit Recorder’s Court by Gov. William Milliken in 1974, replacing Judge John R. Murphy, who died in a plane crash. In 1987, he was elected chief judge of the court. During his tenure as chief judge, the court decided high profile cases such as the Malice Green murder case. In 1992, the National Conference of Black Lawyers named him its Judge of the Year.
After he retired in 1999, he and his wife moved to Diamondhead, Mississippi, where he indulged his passion for golf. The couple returned to Detroit in 2013. Mrs. Roberson passed away in 2018.
In recent years, he served as a visiting judge for the Third Circuit Court.
“I had the great pleasure and honor to argue a number of cases before Judge Roberson – both as a prosecutor early in my career, and later as a defense attorney,”| said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. “He was not only an outstanding judge, but he was a deeply kind, thoughtful and compassionate man who was beloved and respected by all.
“I have admired Judge Roberson throughout my entire career. His death is a loss to his family, to his friends, and to all of us who have looked up to him,” Nessel added.
Roberson is survived by his daughter Portia Roberson; son, Dalton A. Roberson, Jr.; daughter-in-law, Jakeema Roberson and granddaughters, Avery, and Harper Roberson.
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Charles L. Levin
Justice Charles L. Levin, 94, died on November 19.
Levin was born on April 28, 1926 in Detroit. He received his B.A. from the University of Michigan in 1946 and a law degreedegree from the University of Michigan Law School in 1947.
After graduation, he clerked for United States Court of Appeals Judge Charles C. Simons, Sixth Circuit. In 1950, he joined the firm Levin, Levin, Garvett, & Dill, founded by his father Theodore and Uncle Saul Levin, where he practiced corporate, real estate, and tax law for 17 years.
His career in public service began in 1966 when he was elected to fill a vacancy on the Michigan Court of Appeals. In 1972, he was elected to the Michigan Supreme Court after forming his own political party – the Non-Partisan Judicial Party – to focus attention on the need for non-partisan judicial selection. He served on the Supreme Court for 24 years, until his retirement in 1996.
On the court, Levin earned a reputation for scholarship, independence, and fidelity to the common-law tradition of judging. His opinions have been widely published and taught in law schools throughout the United States.
After leaving the bench, Levin continued to stay active in the law by sitting by designation on the Court of Appeals and representing indigent criminal defendants.
“The name ‘Levin’ in deeply embedded in Michigan’s history; the family is known for dedicated service to the people,” said Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget McCormack. “Justice Charles Levin certainly lived up to the name in his 30 years of service on the Court of Appeals and Supreme Court. Justice Levin’s legacy is marked by great scholarship, independence, compassion, and courage. He started his own party in order to run for the Supreme Court – a courageous act of independence that is a model for us all. My colleagues mourn his passing and offer sincerest condolences to the Levin family.”
Levin is survived by his former wife and best friend Judge Helene White, his children, Amy (Matt) Levin Ragen, Fredrick Stuart (Marsha) Levin, Benjamin Joseph White Levin and Francesca Rhoda White Levin, and his grandchildren, Jacob Eliot Ragen, Joshua Brooks Ragen, and Emily Rose Levin, and siblings Mimi (Charles) Levin Lieber, Daniel (Fay Hartog) Levin, and Joseph (Diana McBroom) Levin. He was previously married to the late Dr. Patricia Oppenheim Levin Rice. His oldest son Arthur David Levin passed away in 2009. He is also survived by a loving extended family and many grateful law clerks.
A private family funeral service was conducted last Friday, November 20, by the Ira Kaufman Chapel in Southfield.
It is suggested that those who wish to further honor the memory of Levin may do so by making a contribution to Moran-Olsson Exoneree Support Charitable Trust, 1213 Dhu Varren Road, Ann Arbor, 48105.
