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Article: District Attorney Henry Wade Dies; 'The Chief' Was a Legend in Texas
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- March 2, 2001
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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Henry Wade, 86, whose 35-year career as district attorney of
Dallas County included the murder trial of Jack Ruby and the landmark
abortion case Roe v. Wade, died here March 1. He had Parkinson's
disease.
Mr. Wade, a Texas legend known as "The Chief" around the Dallas
courthouse, is said to have never lost a case he personally
prosecuted.
He took office in 1951 and went on to compile one of the nation's
lowest acquittal rates. Defense lawyers, in fact, formed a 7 Percent
Club, whose name reflected their paltry success rate against Wade's
office.
The U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision
establishing the right to an abortion began in Texas when a pregnant
waitress, ...