Jean Murrell Capers

Jean Murrell Capers (January 11, 1913 – July 18, 2017) was an American judge and a member of the Cleveland City Council.

Biography

Born in Georgetown, Kentucky, Capers moved with her family to Cleveland, Ohio. She went to the Cleveland public schools. Capers graduated from Case Western Reserve University and then received her law degree from Cleveland–Marshall College of Law. Capers was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1945. Capers was an assistant police prosecutor from 1946 to 1949. She also taught in the Cleveland public schools. Capers served on the Cleveland City Council. She was then appointed a Cleveland municipal court judge. She died on July 18, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio.

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Jean Murrell-Capers, graduated from Western Reserve University and Cleveland Law School, predecessor to The Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. She won Cleveland's 1941 tennis championship, organized by the city recreation department. Later she taught health and physical education at Central High School.

Capers ran for Cleveland City Council in 1949 and succeeded in being the first African-American woman to become a member. She held this position for ten years. Between 1964 and 1966 she served as special counsel to the Ohio Attorney General and was an original member of the Women's Advisory Council of the Ohio Bureau of Employment Services. In 1977, Capers was appointed Judge of the Municipal Court by Governor James A. Rhodes and held that position until her retirement in 1986.

Source: clevelandrestoration.org