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Blackgrove B. Hopper and Nancy (Gilbert) Hopper |
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Blackgrove B. Hopper and Nancy (Gilbert) Hopper |
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Most of the initial lineage info for this page was found in files at Rootsweb.com MANY THANKS TO THOSE WHO SHARE INFORMATION! |
provided by  Glenn E. Perry from information taken from various articles written by Esther "Bitty" Hopper about different branches of the Hopper family and published in "Knox County History and Families," ed. Charles Reed Mitchell |
"Corbin Times-Tribune Online" July 13, 2004 |
... by Fred Petke, Staff Writer In January 1978, Lewis B. Hopper opened his first courtroom. It wasn't much: a green National Guard tent set in a vacant lot a couple blocks from the Knox County Courthouse. The furnishings were scrounged any way possible: folding wooden chairs, a construction-type heater and a desk to serve as the bench. For 11 days, some with snow on the ground, Hopper held the first sessions of Knox County's new district court as implemented by the state the year before to eliminate the county courts. Hopper wasn't alone; 35 other new district judges couldn't get into the courthouses at first, whether due to local resistance or a lack of negotiated rent for courthouse space with the state. The tent started Hopper's career as a judge in Knox County, moving up to circuit court in 1984 and being re-elected twice. Last week, Hopper retired from his established post, nearly four months after having a stroke. "It was time," Hopper said Friday. "A whole lot of my buddies around the state have done the same. I was getting to be one of the deans. I was second place in the state for longevity." Since March, Hopper kept busy with some office work but never returned to the bench. A number of special judges, including those in and out of the Tri-County, have handled the court days and trials as needed, along with Hopper's counterpart, Roderick Messer. Messer, in his 12th year as a circuit judge in Knox and Laurel counties, prosecuted cases before Hopper as an assistant county attorney in district court until 1984, when Hopper was elected as a circuit judge. Eight years later, Messer was elected to the circuit judgeship as well. "The fact is he and I have been close friends for so long," Messer said. "We didn't have any friction between us. Talking with judges around the state, I think that was unusual." Hopper has always been outgoing on the bench, often telling stories or jokes to the jurors during a break in a trial. He's also been around long enough to see the children of defendants from his district court days appear before him in circuit court, he said. "It's amazing," he said. "It's not a reunion, but you become very familiar with a certain segment of the population." His longevity on the bench provided familiarity to both defendants and the attorneys trying cases before him. "When you've had a judge that's kind of an institution... it moves the cases along," public defender Roger Gibbs said. "You know (his) general pattern, everyone knows what a case is worth." Former commonwealth's attorney Tom Handy spent much of his career trying cases before Hopper. "His rulings were determined by what happened in court and not influenced by other considerations," Handy said. "He let the lawyers practice their cases without interjecting himself into the cases.' "I tried a lot of cases in front of Judge Hopper," Gibbs said. "He was not a pro-defense judge by any stretch. He certainly understood when you had a jury issue. He's somebody good to sit down and talk about a case. I consider him a trial lawyer's trial judge." Hopper's last trial was a couple weeks before his stroke, an assault and unlawful imprisonment case where both defendants were convicted. Dozens of murder trials alone were tried before Hopper's bench, including Donald Harvey, the so-called 'Angel of Death' who confessed to killing eight people while he worked at Marymount Medical Center. Hopper sentenced Harvey to eight consecutive life sentences. "In November, Hopper's successor will be elected to serve the remaining two years of his present seven-year term," Knox Circuit Clerk *Greg Helton said. "Lewis is a great judge," Helton said. "We're going to miss him terribly. I tried to talk him out of retiring, but it didn't work and I don't blame him." Still, the time has come. Hopper's immediate plans call for taking about three months off for the first time in his life. The rest remains to be seen. "The phone still rings in the wee hours, with people looking for help or advice with a legal situation from the judge," he said. "After 26 and a half years, Hopper's having to say 'I'm not the judge anymore'." "It takes a while to adjust," Hopper said. "I kinda think I'm going to like (retirement). Being a judge is a stressful job. In the position, you feel like you're making a difference in the community. It's ever-changing." ~~~~~
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Greg Helton is the |
Walter "Tub" Hopper
Jody (Faulkner) Hopper
Hopper Funeral Home Family & Staff
Joe Hopper
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