Class of 1959
Logansport High School
Logansport, Indiana

Mark Y. Brown

Mark Y. Brown

September 28, 1941 - January 24, 2002  (60)

     Services for Mark Y. Brown, 60, 2607 E. Broadway, will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday in Calvary Presbyterian Church. 
     He died unexpectedly Thursday, Jan. 24, 2002, during emergency surgery at Logansport Memorial Hospital. 
     Born Sept. 28, 1941, in Logansport, he was the son of William John and Hazel York Brown. On June 27, 1980, in Logansport, he was married to Mona M. Hall Vianco, who survives. 
     Mr. Brown was a practicing attorney in Cass County and a partner with Justice Law Offices. He was a 1959 Logansport High School graduate. In 1963, he graduated from Northwestern University and in 1966, from Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington. From 1977 to 1986, he served as judge of Cass County and Superior courts, and was a member of the Cass County Bar Association. He was a member of Northwestern Alumni Association and was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Indiana and United States District Court, Northern District of Indiana. 
     He was a former deputy state attorney general and executive secretary of the Indiana Alcoholic Beverage Commission, Indianapolis, appointed by Governor Edgar Whitcomb. He had practiced law in Carroll County with Lewis N. Mullin.
     He was a member of Calvary Presbyterian Church, where he served as elder. He also served with Indiana National Guard on active duty.
     Also surviving are one daughter, Elizabeth K. Brown, at home; one stepdaughter, Cheryl A. Johnson, Lafayette; one stepson, Bryan D. Vianco and his wife, Julie, Avon; three stepgrandchildren, Jason and Ben Johnson, Lafayette, and Lauren Kate Vianco, Avon; and one brother-in-law, Jim Hall, Lafayette.
     The Rev. Douglas M. Mankell will officiate at the services. Burial will be in Davis Cemetery, Burnettsville.
     Friends may call from 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday in Gundrum Funeral Home and one hour before the services at the church.
     Memorial contributions may be made to Calvary Presbyterian Church. 

     Members of the law community are mourning the loss of Logansport attorney Mark Brown, who passed away unexpectedly Thursday morning during emergency surgery at Logansport Memorial Hospital. He was 60.
     Born and raised in Logansport, Brown became Cass County's first Superior Court judge, a seat he was appointed to when the court was formed in 1978. He served two years as Superior Judge before being elected to a six-year term in 1980.
     A 1959 Logansport High School graduate and 1963 graduate of Northwestern University, Brown obtained his law degree from Indiana University School of Law in Bloomington in 1966. He was a member of the Cass County Bar Association and Northwestern Alumni Association and was admitted to practiced before the Supreme Court of Indiana and the United States District Court, Northern District of Indiana.
     He had an extensive career in law, having practiced in Carroll County with Lewis N. Mullin and having served as a former Deputy State Attorney General and Judge of Cass County Court. He most recently practiced law in Cass County, where he was a partner with Justice Law Offices for nearly 10 years.
     Brown was more than just a law partner, he was a schoolmate and friend, according to attorney Courtney Justice.
     Their friendship stemmed back to their childhood, said Justice. Both had attended Logansport schools and were close friends. After high school, the two went their separate ways -- Brown attending Northwestern University and Justice attending Wabash College. "We were educated in different places, but we always kept in touch," he said.
     Years later, they returned to Logansport and eventually became law partners. "We always thought we might do something together," said Justice, adding that they didn't have an inkling in high school that their future would include a joint law practice.
     As law partners, Justice relied on Brown's sound judgment. "I found his best quality to be his judgment," said Justice, adding that he was thorough and sound. 
     For the people who knew him, Brown's passing is a tragic loss. 
     "I lost my best friend and my law partner," said Justice, still in shock over the loss. "He was a wonderful guy." 
     And while it was Brown's sound judgment that will be remembered most by his law partner, it was his professionalism that will be remembered by former staff and colleagues. 
     Superior Court Reporter Jane Schnepp, who started a 25-year career in court reporting under Brown, credits the former judge for much of her courtroom knowledge. 
     "He was an excellent teacher," Schnepp said, praising Brown for taking the time to explain the system to her and other new office staff. "Whether it be a pleading or jury instructions, he always had the time to explain that to you. 
     "He taught me how to look up statutes, how to look up case law, how to prepare jury instructions and jury minute entries. ... To me, in his tenure here, what he taught me was the equivalent to a college education," said Schnepp. 
     "I couldn't say enough about the man as a boss, a friend, a mentor. ... I hold him in the highest regard," she said, adding that he will be sorely missed. 
     Brown was very thorough in his work, Schnepp remembered. "He would spend many hours on cases, looking up case law. He wouldn't rule off the cuff, he was so thorough." 
     According to Superior Court I Judge Thomas Perrone, many of the practices Brown implemented in the court's early years are still used today. "He was responsible for getting it set up initially," said Perrone, crediting Brown for how cases are currently processed. "Those things have stood the test of time." 
     "The same practices that are used, the type of entries, everything this court became started with his insight on how it should be," added Schnepp. 
     As a fellow judge and member of the bar association, Perrone holds much respect for the man who set the tone in Cass Superior Court. "The bar has diminished because of Mark's passing. 
     "As a judge, it was a pleasure to have Mark as a litigant in a courtroom. He handled his cases well, he was always prepared. He was a good person, he was an able lawyer and a good judge and we're going to miss him."
©2000 The Pharos-Tribune. A cnhi Newspaper