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in 1978, and was retained by the voters in 1980, 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000 and 2006. He served as the Court's Chief
Justice from 1991 to 1992 and again from 2000 to 2002. In 2000, Opala was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. Throughout his career he was known as a strong advocate of
934:. In January 2005, Opala, then 83 years old and next in line once again to become Chief Justice, filed a federal lawsuit against his colleagues, alleging that they changed Oklahoma Supreme Court rules for succession to chief justice thereby arbitrarily allowing Chief Justice
945:
In addition to his career on the bench, Opala was an adjunct professor of law at
Oklahoma City University, University of Oklahoma and the University of Tulsa, specializing in British and American legal history and constitutional law.
833:. In 1941 he escaped Poland via Turkey on the orders of his superiors in order to meet with Polish troops enlisted in the British Army in Palestine and Ethiopia to assure them that the struggle against the
1142:
For more on the life and contributions of
Justice Opala, see published biography of Marian Opala: Bob Burke & Ryan Leonard, "Opala: In Faithful Service to the Law," Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2012
449:
1233:
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841:
support. After completing his mission, he served briefly with Polish troops in Italy and then parachuted back into Poland to resume his duties with the Polish
Underground.
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from 1968 to 1977. He became a judge on what is now the
Oklahoma Worker's Compensation Court in 1977 before being appointed to the state Supreme Court the following year.
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rights, a commitment he attributes to his experiences as a youth in Nazi-occupied Poland. A group called
Freedom of Information Oklahoma presents the
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889:(OCU) with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1953 and a bachelor's degree in law in 1957. In 1968, he obtained a master's degree in law from
858:
643:
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997:
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881:, and offered to help him immigrate to the United States. With Warr's assistance, Opala settled in Oklahoma City in 1947; he became a
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264:
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First person interview conducted on
October 6, 2010 — four days before his death. Original audio and transcript archived with
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According to his obituary, Justice Opala was survived by his longtime companion, Roberta A. Bertoch and one son,
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318:
886:
304:
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to serve unprecedented consecutive terms. In July 2006, a federal appeals court dismissed Opala's lawsuit "
857:
in
Bavaria. After his liberation by the U.S. Army in 1945, he was befriended by Gene Warr, a captain in the
557:
229:
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838:
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78:
34:
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932:"promoted education about or protection of the individual rights guaranteed under the First Amendment"
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Funeral services were held at All Souls' Episcopal Church in
Oklahoma City on October 18, 2010.
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Bernard, Richard M. (1980) The Poles in
Oklahoma, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, OK.
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from 1978 to 2010. Opala was appointed to the state's highest court in 1978 by Governor
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958:. He was found unconscious two days earlier, on October 9, at his home in
1184:
Okla. Supreme Court Justice Marian Opala talks about his suit against .."
790:
682:
141:
954:
Justice Opala died on October 11, 2010, at Integris Baptist Hospital in
789:. Prior to his appointment as a Supreme Court Justice, Opala served the
877:
Captain Warr helped Opala get a job as a translator for U.S. forces in
865:. Opala confided in Warr that he could not return to Poland after the
963:
818:
778:
774:
121:
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and would probably settle somewhere in the British Commonwealth.
1203:
893:. In 1981, OCU awarded him an honorary Doctor of Laws Degree.
793:
in various positions, including Assistant County Attorney for
829:, and following Poland's defeat by Nazi Germany, joined the
825:
in 1939, Opala, then a university student, enlisted in the
1153:"Marian Opala, Oklahoma Supreme Court justice, dies at 89"
1178:"Judge, 83, alleges age discrimination" (www.courttv.com)
998:"Justice Marian Opala Dies - KRMG Local News on KRMG.com"
1101:"Marian Opala First Amendment Award » FOI Oklahoma"
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In 1944, Opala was captured by German forces in the
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76:
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1119:"Oklahoma Attorney General - www.oag.state.ok.us"
924:First Amendment to the United States Constitution
1200:Voices of Oklahoma interview with Marian Opala.
901:Opala served as Administrative Director of the
837:was being waged vigorously at home with strong
744:
8:
1234:Chief justices of the Oklahoma Supreme Court
1024:Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
766:(January 20, 1921 – October 11, 2010) was a
1079:
1077:
1075:
821:, the son of a prominent banker. After the
1254:University of Tulsa College of Law faculty
751:
737:
186:
18:
1022:Everett, Dianna." "Opala, Marian Peter."
1274:Flossenbürg concentration camp survivors
1244:New York University School of Law alumni
1204:Voices of Oklahoma oral history project.
989:
189:
1229:Justices of the Oklahoma Supreme Court
1264:Polish emigrants to the United States
7:
1038:"Opala celebrates 40 years in state"
803:Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Court
930:every year to an Oklahoman who has
885:six years later. He graduated from
809:Early life and World War II service
928:Marian Opala First Amendment Award
14:
845:Capture and subsequent liberation
797:, Administrative Director of the
1067:Oklahoma Supreme Court Biography
1053:Oklahoma Supreme Court Biography
962:. He had suffered a significant
717:
199:
1239:Oklahoma City University alumni
917:'s District 3 seat by Governor
781:who served as a justice of the
1249:University of Oklahoma faculty
909:Oklahoma Supreme Court service
891:New York University Law School
873:U.S. immigration and education
855:Flossenbürg concentration camp
176:New York University Law School
1:
712:Politics of the United States
1284:21st-century American judges
1279:20th-century American judges
1259:Military personnel from Łódź
1189:, January 24, 2005. 10-13-09
1084:"Marian Opala." (obituary)
913:Opala was appointed to the
903:Oklahoma State Court System
799:Oklahoma State Court System
315:State School Superintendent
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220:United States Constitution
1043:, April 3, 2006. 10-13-09
823:German invasion of Poland
508:Court of Criminal Appeals
181:
95:
84:
41:
28:
1090:Accessed March 31, 2018.
1028:Accessed March 31, 2018.
887:Oklahoma City University
801:, and as a judge on the
644:House of Representatives
617:Congressional delegation
580:Political party strength
445:House of Representatives
1269:Polish prisoners of war
1182:Smith, Janice-Francis.
230:Impeachment in Oklahoma
915:Oklahoma Supreme Court
859:45th Infantry Division
783:Oklahoma Supreme Court
518:Court on the Judiciary
513:Court of Civil Appeals
345:Corporation Commission
335:Insurance Commissioner
79:Oklahoma Supreme Court
35:Oklahoma Supreme Court
883:United States citizen
528:Nominating Commission
459:Speaker pro tempore:
419:President pro tempore
225:Oklahoma Constitution
77:Chief Justice of the
553:State Election Board
523:Court of Impeachment
192:Politics of Oklahoma
1088:. October 14, 2010.
724:Politics portal
265:Lieutenant Governor
1187:The Journal Record
1169:Additional sources
1161:, October 12, 2010
1151:Barbara Hoberock,
897:Early legal career
867:Communist takeover
831:Polish Underground
813:Opala was born in
764:Marian Peter Opala
371:Governor's Cabinet
325:Labor Commissioner
275:Secretary of State
23:Marian Peter Opala
791:State of Oklahoma
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565:Political parties
473:Minority leader:
466:Majority leader:
435:Minority leader:
428:Majority leader:
185:
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1121:. Archived from
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1103:. Archived from
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1000:. Archived from
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879:Occupied Germany
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630:Markwayne Mullin
605:Cities and Towns
575:Republican Party
570:Democratic Party
299:Gentner Drummond
295:Attorney General
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131:October 11, 2010
115:January 20, 1921
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100:Personal details
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835:Nazi occupation
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305:State Treasurer
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155:Polish-American
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65:
53:
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33:Justice of the
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1107:on 2014-01-10.
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940:with prejudice
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329:Leslie Osborn
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1127:. Retrieved
1123:the original
1113:
1105:the original
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1006:. Retrieved
1002:the original
992:
978:Sierra Leone
974:Joseph Opala
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900:
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853:and held in
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812:
763:
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475:Cyndi Munson
461:Kyle Hilbert
413:Matt Pinnell
319:Ryan Walters
269:Matt Pinnell
214:Constitution
164:Joseph Opala
133:(2010-10-11)
86:
66:Succeeded by
54:Appointed by
43:
1224:2010 deaths
1219:1921 births
1158:Tulsa World
919:David Boren
827:Polish Army
787:David Boren
673:Frank Lucas
395:Legislature
389:Legislature
357:Bob Anthony
259:Kevin Stitt
152:Nationality
71:Noma Gurich
59:David Boren
1213:Categories
1129:2006-07-30
1041:Edmond Sun
1008:2010-10-11
984:References
960:Warr Acres
653:Kevin Hern
468:Jon Echols
423:Greg Treat
363:Todd Hiett
289:Cindy Byrd
250:Government
171:Alma mater
111:1921-01-20
1086:Oklahoman
594:Divisions
548:Elections
542:Elections
498:Judiciary
492:Judiciary
437:Kay Floyd
409:President
351:Kim David
309:Todd Russ
244:Executive
91:1991–1992
87:In office
48:1978–2010
44:In office
1069:10-13-09
772:American
683:Tom Cole
600:Counties
255:Governor
160:Children
142:Oklahoma
450:Speaker
964:stroke
839:Allied
819:Poland
779:jurist
775:lawyer
768:Polish
625:Senate
404:Senate
122:Poland
950:Death
861:from
815:Łódź
777:and
399:59th
373:and
261:(R)
128:Died
118:Łódź
105:Born
942:".
695:(R)
685:(R)
675:(R)
665:(R)
655:(R)
638:(R)
632:(R)
477:(D)
470:(R)
463:(R)
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439:(D)
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421::
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1215::
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1074:^
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109:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
