Walter R. Tucker III

Walter Rayford Tucker III (born May 28, 1957) is an American lawyer, politician and minister who served as mayor of Compton and a one-term U.S. representative from California from 1993 to 1995.

Parents and education

Tucker was born in Compton, California. He is the son of Walter R. Tucker, Jr. – a dentist who was the mayor of Compton beginning in 1981. The younger Tucker finished Compton High School in 1974 as the class valedictorian and attended Princeton University for the next two years. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1978 with a degree in political science and earned his J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1981. He was admitted to the California State Bar in 1984.

Professional life

Legal practice and mayor of Compton Tucker was a Los Angeles County deputy district attorney from 1984 to 1986, when he began in private practice as a criminal defense attorney. After Tucker's father died while still in office as mayor of Compton, the younger Tucker won a special election to replace him, becoming the youngest mayor in the city's history at age 33. He served from 1991 to 1992, during the civil unrest in Los Angeles County spawned by the Rodney King verdict. The charges stemmed from his acceptance of $30,000 in bribes during his tenure as Mayor of Compton in 1991, prior to his election to Congress. Tucker maintained his innocence throughout the trial, claiming he had been set up by government prosecutors targeting Black officeholders, although his conviction and sentence were upheld on appeal.

Tucker was sentenced to 27 months in prison by Federal District Court Judge Consuelo Bland Marshall. The sentence also included three years of supervised release following his imprisonment.

Tucker resigned from Congress after his conviction in 1995.

Personal

Tucker is married to Robin Smith and they have two children – Walter R. Tucker IV and Autumn Monet Tucker. He has two sisters – Keta and Camillie, and a brother – Kenneth.