Samuel Conti

Samuel Conti (July 16, 1922 – August 29, 2018) was an American jurist who was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He was appointed to the federal bench in 1970, and assumed senior status in 1987. He continued to hear cases until 2015.

Background

Born on July 16, 1922, in Los Angeles, California, Conti received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Santa Clara in 1945 after serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. He received a Bachelor of Laws from Stanford Law School in 1948.

Career He was in private practice in San Francisco, California from 1948 to 1967. He was Chairman of the Civil Service Board of Appeals in Pittsburg, California from 1956 to 1958. He was city attorney of Concord, California from 1960 to 1969. He was a judge of the Contra Costa County Superior Court from 1968 to 1970.

Federal judicial service

Conti was nominated by President Richard Nixon on October 7, 1970, to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, to a new seat created by 84 Stat. 294. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 13, 1970, and received his commission on October 16, 1970. He assumed senior status on November 1, 1987.

Conti was a self-described conservative known for his tough-on-crime views and ardent support of capital punishment, earning the nicknames "Hanging Sam" and "Slammin' Sam".

Notable cases In 1974, Conti sentenced Nicholas Sand to fifteen years' imprisonment for operating a lab that manufactured LSD, and lamented that it was not a capital offense.

Between 1979–1980, Conti presided over a racketeering trial involving of members of the Hells Angels. He and his family required protection by the United States Marshals due to threats he received. in which John Fogerty was sued by his former label, Fantasy Records, over his 1984 song "The Old Man Down the Road", which they claimed infringed the copyright of his Creedence Clearwater Revival song "Run Through the Jungle". Part of Fogerty's defense involved performing both songs in court for the jury, who found in his favor.

In 2008, Conti ruled that military veterans suing over delayed mental health treatment from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs had no recourse in the courts for their complaint, because systemic error was not proven. He suggested that he was unhappy to have reached that conclusion, and was privately disappointed when his ruling was upheld on appeal.

Personal life and death Conti was married to his wife, Dolores, for 66 years. The couple had three children.

In retirement, Conti lived in Carlsbad, California, and died at home on August 29, 2018, at the age of 96.