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TO REQUEST THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NAME SPRING STREET IN CHARLESTON "JUDGE RICHARD E. FIELDS STREET" AND ERECT APPROPRIATE MARKERS OR SIGNS AT THIS LOCATION CONTAINING THE DESIGNATION.
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina General Assembly are pleased to learn that Judge Richard E. Fields will celebrate his one hundredth birthday in October of 2020; and
Whereas, a native of Charleston, Judge Richard E. Fields is an alumnus of Burke School; Avery Institute; West Virginia State College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration; and Howard University School of Law, where he earned a Bachelor of Laws. Judge Fields was admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia and South Carolina in 1948; and
Whereas, Judge Fields began the practice of law in Charleston in April 1949, making history as the first black person since the early 1900s to open a law office in historic Charleston and the first ever to become a litigator; and
Whereas, in 1969, Judge Fields broke more ground as the first black elected judicial official in the entire Southeast. During his accomplished judicial career, he served as Municipal Judge for the City of Charleston, Judge of the Family Court of Charleston County, and Judge of the Circuit Court of South Carolina; and
Whereas, an active leader in both the public and private sector, Judge Fields has served on a number of boards and committees, including Claflin College's Board of Trustees and Board of Trustees Executive Committee, the Committee to Establish the Charleston School of Law, the Advisory Committee to the Charleston School of Law, and Liberty National Bank's Board of Directors, subsequent to his establishing the bank; and
Whereas, over the course of his career, Judge Fields has received a number of honors and awards, including the 2000 naming of the Sycamore Avenue Branch Post Office in his honor by President Bill Clinton and a 1999 testimonial dinner by the local chapter of 100 Black Men recognizing his public service and contributions to the community and legal profession. The Richard E. Fields Scholarship at Claflin University was established in 1992; and
Whereas, a devout man of faith, Judge Fields served the historic Centenary Methodist Church as treasurer and as the church's delegate to the South Carolina Annual Conference for more than fifty years. He was a delegate to five jurisdictional and general conferences of the United Methodist Church, was a member of three World Methodist Conferences, and was elected to the General Board of Finance and Administration, the corporate body of the United Methodist Church; and
Whereas, Judge Fields married the late Myrtle T. Evan in 1951. Together, they had two children: a daughter, Mary Diane Fields-Reed, and a son, Richard E. Fields, Jr.; and
Whereas, it would be only fitting and proper to pay tribute to this son of South Carolina and his service to the people of South Carolina by naming a road in Charleston in his honor. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring:
That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, request that the Department of Transportation name Spring Street in Charleston "Judge Richard E. Fields Street" and erect appropriate markers or signs at this location containing the designation.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Department of Transportation and Judge Richard E. Fields.
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