Byron N. Scott

Byron Nicholson Scott (March 21, 1903 – December 21, 1991) was an American educator, lawyer and politician who served as the second United States Representative for California's 18th congressional district for two terms, from 1935 to 1939.

Background Scott was born on March 21, 1903, in Council Grove in Morris County, Kansas. He was raised in Council Grove and went through the town's public school system. He went to the University of Kansas at Lawrence, and graduated from the school in 1924. From June 23, 1936, to June 27, 1936, he served as a delegate in the Democratic National Convention held at Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Later that year, Scott ran for re-election as the representative for the 18th district, and easily defeated Republican challenger James F. Collins by more than 18,000 votes in a 58.9%-41.0% majority.

During his tenure, Scott was labeled California's "EPIC Congressman" by some newspapers due to his support for Upton Sinclair and his End Poverty in California program in the 1934 California gubernatorial election. He was the keynote speaker at the first meeting of the Wilmington EPIC Club on June 8, 1934, and campaigned for Congress on EPIC's economic platform.

In the 1938 House elections, Scott was challenged by Thomas M. Eaton. In a close race, Eaton squeezed past Scott by a mere 342 vote, or 0.3% margin. For the next two years, he served as the secretary of the California Highway Commission. Scott again ran for the seat in 1940 but lost to Republican challenger Ward Johnson by a nearly 10% majority. After spending 1941 and 1942 in the construction business, Scott served on Roosevelt's World War II War Production Board in Washington, D.C., until the end of the war in 1945.

In 1954, he represented U.S. Treasury official George A. Eddy during congressional loyalty/security hearings related to ongoing investigations into Eddy's Treasury superior Harry Dexter White.

In 1959, he represented Frank Kameny in his lawsuit against the Secretary of the Army. Kameny, who had been fired "for homosexuality", filed the case challenging the US Government's ban on homosexual employees. After summary judgment was granted at the Justice Department's request, Scott represented Kameny in his appeal. Kameny worked alone after losing appeal, basing his Petition for Writ of Certiorari on a sample provided by Scott. His was the first gay rights case to be presented to the United States Supreme Court. Although the Court denied him certiorari, On June 29, 2009, John Berry (Director of the Office of Personnel Management) formally apologized to Kameny on behalf of the United States government. Kameny's filings and other papers are housed in the Library of Congress.