Warren Magee
Warren Egbert Magee, Male 27 April 1908 - 25 February 2000
Born, Washingotn City, District of Columbia.
Died, Tampa, Hillsborough Co., Florida.
Married to Sue Wrenn Married to Ruth Satterfield. Father of W. Magee and James Magee and Dianne Magee.
Information FamilyShared Collaborate
upt politicians, and Sen. Joseph McCarthy, died in Washington, D.C., on Fe
b. 25.
riminals who were condemned to death at the Nuremberg trials, and then han
ged. Another client was Baron Ernst von Weizsaecker, state secretary to t
he German Foreign Office and the Nazis' ambassador to the Vatican. In 194
9, Mr. Magee failed to save Rep. Andrew May, D-Ky., who was chairman of t
he House Military Affairs Committee during World War II, from a prison sen
tence for bribery and corruption, though President Harry S Truman later pa
rdoned him.
st crusader, in the $2-million libel suit McCarthy brought against Sen. Wi
lliam Benton, D-Conn., in 1953. McCarthy charged that Benton had slander
ed him by calling for his removal from the Senate, but in 1954, he dropp
ed his action. Mr. Magee's willingness to represent unpopular defendan
ts stemmed from his enjoyment of testing the law's limits, his daughter, D
ianne M. Nordyke, told The Washington Post. "He was a lawyer first," Nord
yke said.
can University's Law School and was admitted to the District of Columbia b
ar in 1930. After working at the Justice Department, he entered private pr
actice in 1938, forming what later became the firm of Magee & Bulow. He re
tired in the late 1980s.
ariahs brought him his best-known clients, Nazi war criminals and Sen. Jos
eph R. McCarthy (R-Wis.), died of complications of bladder and prostate ca
ncer Feb. 25 at his winter home in Tampa. He also lived in Bethesda. Mr. M
agee had worked for 18 years in Washington -- and was known for his defen
se work for at least one disgraced congressman -- when he was asked in 19
48 to take part in the Nuremberg war crimes trials. His client was Baron E
rnst von Weizsaecker, the former German secretary of state and wartime amb
assador to the Vatican. The German diplomat had a mixed reputation, with s
ome saying he helped shelter Jews and other evidence indicating he sign
ed documents sending thousands to death camps. His Western supporters hir
ed Mr. Magee, whose defense resulted in a five-year prison term for the di
plomat. That sentence was commuted shortly before von Weizsaecker di
ed in 1951. For his work, Mr. Magee received a Papal Gold Medal from Po
pe Pius XII. In 1951, he was unsuccessful in a request to the Supreme Cou
rt for a stay of execution for seven other Nazi war criminals. He argued t
hat the death penalty violated the new West German constitution. Among tho
se subsequently hanged was Paul Blobel, an SS colonel who ordered 60,000 J
ews killed. "When nobody else would take something, he would," said Mr. Ma
gee's daughter, Dianne M. Nordyke. She added that "he was a lawyer firs
t" and liked testing the law's limits. "Before he could obtain informati
on [in the seven Nazis' defense], they hung them, and that upset him immen
sely." Washington lawyer Jacob A. Stein, who first met Mr. Magee in 195
0, called him a gifted, self-effacing lawyer who "took pleasure in not bei
ng in the club, so he made his friendships among people who didn't fit in
." Such a temperament made Mr. Magee a natural to represent an America-Fir
ster in a perjury trial, combative local lawyer K. Dorsey Offutt in multip
le contempt citations, and McCarthy in his $2 million libel-slander-conspi
racy suit against Sen. William Benton (D-Conn.). Benton had called the Wis
consin senator a corrupt liar deserving of expulsion. Earlier, he had defe
nded Rep. Andrew J. May (D-Ken.), chairman of the House Military Affairs C
ommittee during World War II. Kay was sentenced to nine months in pris
on in 1947 for taking bribes from a munitions combine, but President Har
ry S. Truman granted a full pardon in 1952. Warren Egbert Magee, a Washing
ton native, graduated from McKinley Technical High School and graduat
ed in 1929 from what is now American University's law school. After five y
ears in private practice, he joined the Justice Department as special atto
rney and became principal trial attorney for the Lands Division. He form
ed what became Magee & Bulow in 1938 and retired in the late 1980s. Mr. Ma
gee was a member of the University Club, the Congressional Country Club a
nd the Touchdown Club, a private sporting group. His first wife, Sue Mayfi
eld Wrenn, whom he married in 1930, died in 1946. Survivors include his wi
fe, Leslie Magee of Bethesda; two children from his first marriage, Dian
ne M. Nordyke of Bethesda and Robert W. Magee of Vero Beach, Fla.; two sis
ters, Lois Harrison of Alexandria and Helen Rossiter of University Par
k; 12 grandchildren; and 18 great-grandchildren. A son from his first marr
iage, James W., died in 1997.
ariahs brought him his best-known clients: a Nazi war criminal and Sen. Jo
seph R. McCarthy (R-Wis.). Magee had practiced for 18 years in Washingto
n, and was known for his defense work for at least one disgraced congressm
an, when he was asked in 1948 to take part in the Nuremberg war crimes tri
als. His client was Baron Ernst von Weizsaecker, the former German secreta
ry of state and wartime ambassador to the Vatican. The German diplomat h
ad a mixed reputation. Some said he helped shelter Jews, but other eviden
ce indicated that he signed documents sending thousands to death camps. H
is Western supporters hired Magee, whose defense resulted in a five-year p
rison term for the diplomat. That sentence was commuted shortly before V
on Weizsaecker died in 1951. For his work, Magee received a Papal Gold Med
al from Pope Pius XII. Washington lawyer Jacob A. Stein, who first met Mag
ee in 1950, called him a gifted, self-effacing lawyer who "took pleasu
re in not being in the club, so he made his friendships among people who d
idn't fit in." Such a temperament made Magee a natural to represent McCart
hy in his $2-million libel-slander-conspiracy suit against Sen. William Be
nton, (D-Conn.). Benton had called the Wisconsin senator a corrupt liar de
serving of expulsion from the Senate. McCarthy later dropped the suit. Mag
ee, a Washington, D.C., native, graduated in 1929 from what is now Americ
an University's law school. After five years in private practice, he join
ed the Justice Department as special attorney and became principal trial a
ttorney for the Lands Division. In 1938, he formed what became Magee & Bul
ow; he retired in the late 1980s. On Feb. 25 in Tampa, Fla. of complicatio
ns from bladder and prostate cancer.
pt politicians and Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, died on Feb. 25 in Washingt
on. He was 91.
th at the Nuremberg trials and then hanged after World War II. He also def
ended Baron Ernst von Weizsacker, state secretary to the German Foreign Of
fice and the Nazis' Ambassador to the Vatican.
ky Democrat who was chairman of the House Military Affairs Committee duri
ng World War II, from a prison sentence for bribery and corruption, thou
gh President Harry S. Truman later pardoned him.
sin Republican, in the $2 million libel suit that Mr. McCarthy brought aga
inst Senator William Benton, Democrat of Connecticut. The suit asserted th
at Mr. Benton had slandered his rival by calling for his removal from t
he Senate.
is enjoyment of testing the law's limits, his daughter, Dianne M. Nordyk
e, told The Washington Post. ''He was a lawyer first,'' Ms. Nordyke sai
can University's Law School and was admitted to the District of Columbia b
ar in 1930. After working at the Justice Department, he entered private pr
actice in 1938, forming what later became the firm of Magee & Bulow. He re
tired in the late 1980's.
om death for crimes against humanity, sentences imposed by the Internation
al Military Tribunal. Those condemned to die, all former senior office
rs in the SS, included Oswald Pohl, blamed for the destruction of the Wars
aw Ghetto and the killing or deportation of more than 56,000 Jews; Otto Oh
lendorf, responsible for the murder of some 90,000 people; and Paul Blobe
l, convicted of ordering the deaths of 60,000 Jews.
ls in the American courts. In one instance, by arguing that the United Sta
tes was bound to respect the new West German Constitution, which banned t
he death penalty, he won a reprieve after the condemned men's wives had pa
id what they were told would be their last visit.
her stays of execution. The next day the seven prisoners were hanged in t
he courtyard of Landsberg prison in Bavaria. They were the last of the 2
75 World War II criminals executed by the United States.
r, one of 21 Nazi diplomats and officials accused of lesser war crimes. M
r. Magee argued that his client had sought to brake the excesses of his Na
zi superiors.
agee later succeeded in getting this reduced to five years.
9), the British historian John Cornwell paints a reasonably creditable pic
ture of the baron, saying his great fear was that moves against the Itali
an Jews would be an unbearable strain on the pope's promise of impartiali
ty toward the war.
de him a natural choice to represent Senator McCarthy in his 1953 libel su
it against Senator Benton, who had called Mr. McCarthy a corrupt liar w
ho deserved to be expelled from the Senate.
iversity, paraphrasing von Clausewitz, said that the two senators regard
ed the court case as ''politics carried on by other means'' and soug
ht to politicize the hearings. Mr. Benton even suggested calling Winston C
hurchill to testify.
uire of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia deci
ded to delay his ruling on disputed points in the case ''for some little t
ime,'' which meant until after the election. When Mr. Benton lost his Sena
te seat that November, Mr. McCarthy decided there was no point in pursui
ng the litigation, which risked doing him more harm than good.
ry charges arising from an accusation that he had accepted money from t
he German charge d'affairs in Washington in the early days of World W
ar II to finance a magazine urging the United States to keep out of the wa
r.
ed the book ''The Goebbels Diaries,'' based on the presumed papers of t
he Nazi leader Joseph Goebbels, papers that Russian troops in Berlin had o
rdered a junk book dealer to remove from the ruins of the Propaganda Minis
try in 1946. The United States government contended that the papers were w
ar loot and that any profits made from a book based on them should go towa
rd war reparations.
rom his marriage to Sue Mayfield Wren, who died in 1946.
r. Magee represented in a corruption case after World War II. (Associat
ed Press, 1947)
uary on Saturday about Warren Magee, a lawyer who represented unpopular cl
ients, misstated his place of death. It was Tampa, Fla.; he had practic
ed in Washington.
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al Congress (September 5, 1774 to October 21, 1788) and the Congress of t
he United States (from the first through the ninety- first Congress Mar
ch 4, 1789, to January 3, 1971, inclusive). Washington, DC: U.S. Governme
nt Printing Office, 1971. Biographies begin on page 487. (BiDrAC)
nental Congress, September 5, 1774 to October 21, 1788 and the Congre
ss of the United States from the first through the one hundredth Congresse
s, March 4, 1789, to January 3, 1989, inclusive. Bicentennial Edition. Was
hington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1989. Biographies begin on p
age 507. (BiDrUSC)
y. Volume 1, 1897-1942. Chicago: A.N. Marquis Co., 1943. (WhAm 1)
00 men and women who contributed to the United States political scene fr
om colonial days up to and including the immediate past. By Dan and Inez M
orris. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1974. (WhAmP)
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nd magazines. Volume 25: September, 1999-August, 2000. New York: H. W. Wil
son Co., 2000. (BioIn 25)
nd magazines. Volume 26: September, 2000-August, 2001. New York: H. W. Wil
son Co., 2001. (BioIn 26)
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vidence, NJ: Marquis Who's Who, 2000. (WhAm 13)
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ical information of general interest. Volume 31, Numbers 1- 12. Ann Arbo
r, MI: Bell & Howell Information & Learning Co., 2000. Use the annual Ind
ex to locate biographies. (NewYTBS 31) Biography contains portrait.
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's Who, 1974. (WhoAm 38)
's Who, 1976. (WhoAm 39)
's Who, 1978. (WhoAm 40)
's Who, 1980. (WhoAm 41)
o, 1978. (WhoAmL 1)
o, 1979. (WhoAmL 2)
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L: Marquis Who's Who, 1974. (WhoFI 18)
L: Marquis Who's Who, 1975. (WhoFI 19)
L: Marquis Who's Who, 1977. (WhoFI 20)
L: Marquis Who's Who, 1979. (WhoFI 21)
Sources
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