Alfred Goodwin | |
|---|---|
| Senior Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit | |
| In office January 31, 1991 – December 27, 2022 | |
| Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit | |
| In office June 15, 1988 – January 31, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | James R. Browning |
| Succeeded by | J. Clifford Wallace |
| Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit | |
| In office November 30, 1971 – January 31, 1991 | |
| Appointed by | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | John Kilkenny |
| Succeeded by | Andrew Kleinfeld |
| Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon | |
| In office December 11, 1969 – December 17, 1971 | |
| Appointed by | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | John Kilkenny |
| Succeeded by | Otto Richard Skopil Jr. |
| 72nd Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court | |
| In office March 8, 1960 – December 19, 1969 | |
| Appointed by | Mark Hatfield |
| Preceded by | Hall S. Lusk |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Tongue |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alfred Theodore Goodwin June 29, 1923 Bellingham, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | December 27, 2022 (aged 99) Happy Valley, Oregon, U.S. |
| Education | University of Oregon (BA, JD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army |
| Years of service |
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| Rank |
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| Unit | United States Army Reserve, Judge Advocate General's Corps |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Alfred Theodore Goodwin (June 29, 1923 – December 27, 2022) was an American jurist who was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and also a district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. Goodwin wrote the majority opinion for the Ninth Circuit in the famous pledge of allegiance case that was decided by the United States Supreme Court as Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow. Goodwin found that the recitation of the Pledge with the words "under God" violated the Establishment Clause, but the Supreme Court reversed his ruling. Goodwin famously wrote, "A profession that we are a nation 'under God' is identical, for Establishment Clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation 'under Jesus,' a nation 'under Vishnu,' a nation 'under Zeus,' or a nation 'under no god,' because none of these professions can be neutral with respect to religion."[1]