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ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 81
BY REPRESENTATIVE TAYLOR
A RESOLUTION
To commemorate the legacy of Louis Westerfield.
WHEREAS, it is with great pride that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana recognizes the inspiring life of the late Louis Westerfield and
commemorates his outstanding legacy as a trailblazing lawyer, educator, and community
leader; and
WHEREAS, Louis Westerfield was born on July 31, 1949, in DeKalb, Mississippi,
to Louis Westerfield and Helen Clayborne Westerfield and was baptized at an early age at
Mt. Sinai Baptist Church in DeKalb; and
WHEREAS, Louis spent his youth in rural Mississippi and New Orleans, Louisiana;
he attended Kemper County Elementary School, Samuel J. Green Junior High School, and
Walter L. Cohen Senior High School, and he graduated from L.B. Landry Senior High
School; and
WHEREAS, Louis discovered a lifelong love of education when he enrolled at
Southern University at New Orleans; he was active in educational pursuits, student
government, and Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, and he graduated in 1971 with a bachelor of arts
degree in political science; he carried a love for Southern and the opportunities he received
there for the remainder of his life; and
WHEREAS, during his undergraduate studies, Louis met his future wife, Gelounder;
they married in 1971 and raised three children: Anthony, Anika, and Anson; they were
supportive and caring for each other, and they were immensely proud of their children; and
WHEREAS, Louis continued his education at the Southern University School of Law
and later transferred to Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans, where he received
a juris doctorate in 1974; while in law school, he served as an instructor of American
government at Southern University at New Orleans; and
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WHEREAS, upon graduating from law school, Louis worked as an assistant district
attorney for the city of New Orleans; he also worked as a member of the board of arbitrators
for the Longshoreman Union and the New Orleans Steamship Association; and
WHEREAS, although Louis was a talented prosecutor, he chose to return to school
and begin a career as a law professor; in 1975, he accepted a position as an assistant
professor of law and director of the Law Clinic at Southern University School of Law in
Baton Rouge; and
WHEREAS, Louis moved his family back to New Orleans to enable him to teach at
Loyola University School of Law, where he taught subjects ranging from criminal law to
constitutional law, and became a tenured professor of law; while at Loyola, he was actively
involved in many organizations, including the boards of the Urban League, New Orleans
Legal Assistance Corporation, and Big Brothers; in 1977, the United States Jaycees named
him the "Outstanding Young Man in America" in recognition of his accomplishments; and
WHEREAS, in 1979, Louis and his family moved to New York to allow him to
pursue advanced legal studies at Columbia University School of Law, and in 1980, he
received a master of law degree in constitutional and criminal law; and
WHEREAS, in 1983, Louis and his family moved to Mississippi, where he taught
at the University of Mississippi School of Law and became the school's first tenured African
American law professor; he remained dedicated to community service and chaired the
Mississippi Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights from
1985 to 1986; and
WHEREAS, in 1986, Louis authored and published a legal textbook on the law of
Louisiana evidence, and 1991, he coauthored a second revised edition of the book; and
WHEREAS, Professor Westerfield became the dean of North Carolina Central
University in June 1986, at the age of thirty-six; under his leadership, the school improved
its library, bar passage rates, and faculty scholarships; while in North Carolina, he was
actively involved with Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity; he served as dean for four years and
developed a national reputation as a hard-working, friendly, and demanding leader; and
WHEREAS, in 1990, Dean Westerfield was named dean of Loyola University
School of Law, making him the first African American dean in the school's history; over the
course of his four-year tenure as dean, he oversaw a historic diversification of the school's
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student body, faculty, and staff, and the school expanded services and raised record amounts
of funds for endowed professorships, scholarships, and operations; and
WHEREAS, while at Loyola, Dean Westerfield was recruited to join the board of
directors of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington, D.C.; in this
role, he and other civil rights leaders met with President Bill Clinton at the White House to
discuss national civil rights issues; and
WHEREAS, in 1992, Dean Westerfield received an honorary doctorate of laws from
Southern University at New Orleans; at this time, he was active in numerous civic
organizations, including the Bureau of Governmental Research, Greater New Orleans
Foundation, World Trade Center, and Southern University at New Orleans Foundation; and
WHEREAS, during the summer of 1994, Dean Westerfield accepted an appointment
from the Louisiana Supreme Court to serve as an appellate judge for the Second Circuit
Court of Appeal; he was also presented with the prestigious A.P. Tureaud Black Citizenship
Medal from the NAACP of Louisiana and received awards from the American Bar
Association, the Louis A. Martinet Society, and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity; and
WHEREAS, Dean Westerfield returned to Mississippi in July 1994 to serve as the
dean and director of the University of Mississippi School of Law; he was the first African
American to serve in this role, and his administration was distinguished through numerous
notable achievements, including an increase in the school endowment by over one million
dollars and a substantial increase in the Lamar Order endowment and membership; during
his tenure, the number of minority students enrolled at the school doubled; and
WHEREAS, in 1995, Dean Westerfield was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws
from Dillard University, and his accomplishments were featured in a profile published in
EBONY magazine; in 1996, Tougaloo College presented him with an honorary doctorate of
laws, and he was one of twenty-eight people in the United States who were profiled in Nestle
Corporation's Men of Courage; and
WHEREAS, despite Dean Louis Westerfield's untimely passing on August 24, 1996,
he forged an unforgettable legacy of dedication to excellence and service to family,
education, scholarship, and community; he is among Louisiana's most cherished sons, and
his forty-seven years of trailblazing achievements are worthy of the highest recognition.
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THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commemorate the legacy of Louis Westerfield; does
hereby recognize his trailblazing achievements in the legal profession; and does hereby
extend enduring appreciation for his many contributions to the state of Louisiana and
beyond.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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