Ossie Brown
Encyclopedia
Ossie B. Brown was a Baton Rouge
Democrat
who served two six-year terms as district attorney
of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
, from 1972—1984. In 1970, he successfully defended United States Army
Sergeant
David Mitchell in the My Lai Massacre
cases. Brown was also a talented musician
and an active Baptist
layman.
Ossie Brown was born to George F. Brown and the former Lovie Phenald in Winnfield
, the seat of Winn Parish and the traditional home of the Long
political dynasty
. He was reared in Baker
in East Baton Rouge Parish and graduated from Baker High School, where he was named president of Boys State
and composed the Baker High alma mater
. He attended Napa Junior College in Napa
, California
, and then entered the United States Navy
during World War II
. Thereafter, he procured his bachelor of arts
degree in pre-law
from Louisiana State University
in Baton Rouge, where he was the university drum major
. He lettered in basketball
and tennis
and was president of Sigma Chi
social fraternity
. Brown also graduated from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center
at LSU. He then launched a half-century-long criminal law
practice in Baton Rouge. Prior to his tenure as district attorney, Brown was the Baton Rouge Municipal Court judge
. In 1970, former LSU quarterback
and future East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor
-President Pat Screen
joined Brown's firm.
in central Texas
. Mitchell was accused by the Army of having committed war crime
s against the Vietnam
ese during the Vietnam War
. Brown predicted that Mitchell's prosectors, who rested their arguments early, had not "proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt." The next day, Brown collapsed in his motel
room and was later taken to a hospital
in Temple
in Bell County
. The judge, Colonel
George R. Robinson, adjourned the case until Brown's recovery.
One of the witnesses against Mitchell was former radio
man Charles Sledge (born 1947), an African American
luggage
-factory worker from Sardis
in Panola County
in northwestern Mississippi
. Sledge said that he "positively" saw Mitchell shoot a group of Vietnamese women, children, and senior men who took cover in a ditch
. Sledge also said that he saw Mitchell confer with Second Lieutenant
William Calley Jr.
, at the edge of the trench before the two opened fire on the villagers from about five or six feet away. "They were falling and screaming," Sledge testified. Calley, meanwhile, was tried November 16, 1970, at Fort Benning, Georgia
. Brown brought out several discrepancies between Sledge's courtroom statements and his earlier testimony before Army investigators; one was Sledge's earlier claim that he "believed" Mitchell had fired into the ditch and his claim at trial that he was "positive" that Mitchell had killed the civilians.
counts against Commissioner of Agriculture
and Forestry
Dave L. Pearce
on grounds of the state of Pearce's health. In 1984, as his tenure wound down, Brown was indicted
by a federal grand jury
for extortion
, mail fraud, and perjury
after he failed to indict two men for possession of ten grams of cocaine. The day after the East Baton Rouge Parish grand jury declined to take action against the two suspects, the wealthy father of one of the men lent Brown $168,000. A state district judge testified that Brown had asked him to suppress evidence in the case. Brown was acquitted and said that God
wanted him to seek a third term. He had during his tenure crusaded against narcotics and pornography
. Though Brown had been the first EBR DA in memory to have been unopposed for a second term in 1978, he was defeated in 1984 by the Republican
Bryan Edward Bush, Jr.
(1934-2010).
In 1973, Brown prevented Baton Rouge theaters from showing the X-rated
film
The Last Tango in Paris with Marlon Brando
. So had the Rapides Parish District Attorney Edwin O. Ware, III, acted accordingly. In 1979, Brown blocked the showing of the comedy
, “Monty Python’s Life of Brian”. Brown asked Baton Rouge magazine
distributors not to offer the March 1977 issue of Hustler
, which a state court judge in Ohio
ruled obscene.
In 1980, the black attorney Murphy Bell filed suit against the city of Baton Rouge and District Attorney Brown regarding civil rights
protection for African-American suspects. The suit, which stemmed from the accidental fatal shooting by police
of a black teenager named Clarence Morrison, Jr. (born ca. 1963), claimed, among various allegations, that Brown had used the grand jury investigative procedure as a "legal backup" to support arbitrary actions by the police department. The city and Brown, however, prevailed in the initial court and on appeal.
Crisis Center, the Pretrial Intervention Program, the Victim and Witness Assistance Program, and "I Care", a drug
prevention program. Brown served too on the executive council of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement. He was chairman of the first child abuse
committee formed by the National District Attorney's Association. He wrote You and the Law, a book
used in civics
classes in the East Baton Rouge Parish school system.
and the executive committee of the Boy Scouts of America
Istrouma Council. He also worked in the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
. He hosted the Lions Club Crippled Children's Telethon. He supported the Louisiana Baptist Children's Home orphanage
in Monroe
. Since 1964, Brown had been an active member of the Florida Boulevard Baptist Church, where he taught the Fellowship Bible
class. Earlier, he had been music director of various churches.
After he left the office of district attorney, Brown resumed his law practice until he retired in the year 2000 from the still existing Law Offices of Ossie Brown at 123 St. Ferdinand Street in Baton Rouge. One of the partners is Brown's son, Dana Brent Brown.
Services were held on August 30, 2008, at the Florida Avenue Baptist Church. Entombment was in the Green Oaks Memorial Park Mausoleum
. Brown was survived by his wife of forty-eight years, the former Faye Underwood (born November 5, 1931); two sons, Dana Brown (born July 10, 1962) and wife Natalie (born November 29, 1970) and Kirk Brown of Napa, California; daughter, Kelli B. Leon (born December 24, 1968) of Baton Rouge; four grandchildren, Brycyn Brown, Max Brown, and Alexa and Amber Leon; and four great-grandchildren.
Current EBR District Attorney Hillar Moore, III, told the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate that Brown "stood for certain principles and took positions that were always firm. He was always for the victims of crime." Moore said that when he worked for Brown as an investigator while he was still in college and that the DA "adopted me as a son."Moore, who supported Brown in the 1984 election, remained an investigator under DA Bryan Bush despite their partisan difference.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
who served two six-year terms as district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, from 1972—1984. In 1970, he successfully defended United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
David Mitchell in the My Lai Massacre
My Lai Massacre
The My Lai Massacre was the Vietnam War mass murder of 347–504 unarmed civilians in South Vietnam on March 16, 1968, by United States Army soldiers of "Charlie" Company of 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11th Brigade of the Americal Division. Most of the victims were women, children , and...
cases. Brown was also a talented musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and an active Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
layman.
Ossie Brown was born to George F. Brown and the former Lovie Phenald in Winnfield
Winnfield, Louisiana
Winnfield is a city in and the parish seat of Winn Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,749 at the 2000 census. It has long been associated with the Long faction of the Louisiana Democratic Party and was home to three governors of Louisiana.-Geography:Winnfield is located at ...
, the seat of Winn Parish and the traditional home of the Long
Huey Long
Huey Pierce Long, Jr. , nicknamed The Kingfish, served as the 40th Governor of Louisiana from 1928–1932 and as a U.S. Senator from 1932 to 1935. A Democrat, he was noted for his radical populist policies. Though a backer of Franklin D...
political dynasty
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
. He was reared in Baker
Baker, Louisiana
Baker is a city in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States, and a part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,793 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Baker is located at...
in East Baton Rouge Parish and graduated from Baker High School, where he was named president of Boys State
Boys/Girls State
Boys State and Girls State are summer leadership and citizenship programs sponsored by the American Legion and the American Legion Auxiliary for high school students between their junior and senior years. Boys and Girls State programs both began in 1937 and are held in each of the U.S. states ,...
and composed the Baker High alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
. He attended Napa Junior College in Napa
Napa, California
-History:The name Napa was probably derived from the name given to a southern Nappan village whose people shared the area with elk, deer, grizzlies and cougars for many centuries, according to Napa historian Kami Santiago. At the time of the first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823, the...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and then entered the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Thereafter, he procured his bachelor of arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in pre-law
Pre-law
In the United States, pre-law refers to any course of study taken by an undergraduate in preparation for study at a law school.The American Bar Association requires law schools that it approves to require at least a bachelor's degree for North American students for admission...
from Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge, where he was the university drum major
Drum Major
A drum major is the leader of a marching band, drum and bugle corps, or pipe band, usually positioned at the head of the band or corps. The drum major, who is often dressed in more ornate clothing than the rest of the band or corps, is responsible for providing commands to the ensemble regarding...
. He lettered in basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
and was president of Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi is the largest and one of the oldest college Greek-letter secret and social fraternities in North America with 244 active chapters and more than . Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon...
social fraternity
Fraternity
A fraternity is a brotherhood, though the term usually connotes a distinct or formal organization. An organization referred to as a fraternity may be a:*Secret society*Chivalric order*Benefit society*Friendly society*Social club*Trade union...
. Brown also graduated from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Paul M. Hebert Law Center
The Paul M. Hebert Law Center is a law school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, part of the Louisiana State University System and located on the main campus of Louisiana State University....
at LSU. He then launched a half-century-long criminal law
Criminal law
Criminal law, is the body of law that relates to crime. It might be defined as the body of rules that defines conduct that is not allowed because it is held to threaten, harm or endanger the safety and welfare of people, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on people who do not obey...
practice in Baton Rouge. Prior to his tenure as district attorney, Brown was the Baton Rouge Municipal Court judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
. In 1970, former LSU quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
and future East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
-President Pat Screen
Pat Screen
James Patrick Screen, Jr., known as Pat Screen , was a Louisiana State University quarterback from New Orleans, Louisiana, who served as the Democratic Mayor-President of East Baton Rouge Parish from 1981–1988....
joined Brown's firm.
The My Lai case
Brown's most memorable court victory was in the 1970 trial of Sergeant Mitchell (born 1940) held at Fort HoodFort Hood, Texas
Fort Hood is a United States military post located outside of Killeen, Texas. The post is named after Confederate General John Bell Hood. It islocated halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas....
in central Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Mitchell was accused by the Army of having committed war crime
War crime
War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...
s against the Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
ese during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Brown predicted that Mitchell's prosectors, who rested their arguments early, had not "proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt." The next day, Brown collapsed in his motel
Motel
A motor hotel, or motel for short, is a hotel designed for motorists, and usually has a parking area for motor vehicles...
room and was later taken to a hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
in Temple
Temple, Texas
Temple is a city in Bell County, Texas, United States. Located near the county seat of Belton, Temple lies in the region referred to as Central Texas. Located off Interstate 35, Temple is 65 miles north of Austin and 34 miles south of Waco. In the 2010 Census, Temple's population was 66,102, an...
in Bell County
Bell County, Texas
Bell County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Bell County was founded in 1850. It is part of the Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 2000, the county's population was 237,974; in 2010 the U.S. Census Bureau reported that its population had reached...
. The judge, Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
George R. Robinson, adjourned the case until Brown's recovery.
One of the witnesses against Mitchell was former radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
man Charles Sledge (born 1947), an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
luggage
Luggage
Baggage is any number of bags, cases and containers which hold a traveller's articles during transit.Luggage is more or less the same concept as "baggage", but is normally used in relation to the personal luggage of a specific person or persons Baggage is any number of bags, cases and containers...
-factory worker from Sardis
Sardis, Mississippi
Sardis is a town in Panola County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,038.-Geography:Sardis is located at ....
in Panola County
Panola County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 34,274 people, 12,232 households, and 9,014 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile . There were 13,736 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile...
in northwestern Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. Sledge said that he "positively" saw Mitchell shoot a group of Vietnamese women, children, and senior men who took cover in a ditch
Ditch
A ditch is usually defined as a small to moderate depression created to channel water.In Anglo-Saxon, the word dïc already existed and was pronounced 'deek' in northern England and 'deetch' in the south. The origins of the word lie in digging a trench and forming the upcast soil into a bank...
. Sledge also said that he saw Mitchell confer with Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
William Calley Jr.
William Calley
William Laws Calley is a convicted American war criminal and a former U.S. Army officer found guilty of murder for his role in the My Lai Massacre on March 16, 1968, during the Vietnam War.-Early life:...
, at the edge of the trench before the two opened fire on the villagers from about five or six feet away. "They were falling and screaming," Sledge testified. Calley, meanwhile, was tried November 16, 1970, at Fort Benning, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. Brown brought out several discrepancies between Sledge's courtroom statements and his earlier testimony before Army investigators; one was Sledge's earlier claim that he "believed" Mitchell had fired into the ditch and his claim at trial that he was "positive" that Mitchell had killed the civilians.
Other controversies
As DA, Brown was involved in several controversies. In 1975, he dropped twenty-six felonyFelony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
counts against Commissioner of Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and Forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
Dave L. Pearce
Dave Pearce
Dave Pearce is a British dance DJ and record producer, who has played gigs across the UK and the world, although he is perhaps best known for his work in radio. He currently works for the BBC 6 Music...
on grounds of the state of Pearce's health. In 1984, as his tenure wound down, Brown was indicted
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
by a federal grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
for extortion
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
, mail fraud, and perjury
Perjury
Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding. That is, the witness falsely promises to tell the truth about matters which affect the outcome of the...
after he failed to indict two men for possession of ten grams of cocaine. The day after the East Baton Rouge Parish grand jury declined to take action against the two suspects, the wealthy father of one of the men lent Brown $168,000. A state district judge testified that Brown had asked him to suppress evidence in the case. Brown was acquitted and said that God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
wanted him to seek a third term. He had during his tenure crusaded against narcotics and pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
. Though Brown had been the first EBR DA in memory to have been unopposed for a second term in 1978, he was defeated in 1984 by the Republican
Bryan Edward Bush, Jr.
Bryan Bush (Louisiana politician)
Bryan Edward Bush, Jr. , was the first Republican of the 20th century to hold the position of district attorney of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana. Elected in 1984, Bush took office in 1985 and resigned in 1990 after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of maintaining incomplete office records...
(1934-2010).
In 1973, Brown prevented Baton Rouge theaters from showing the X-rated
X-rated
In some countries, X is or has been a motion picture rating reserved for the most explicit films. Films rated X are intended only for viewing by adults, usually legally defined as people over the age of 17.-United Kingdom:...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
The Last Tango in Paris with Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
. So had the Rapides Parish District Attorney Edwin O. Ware, III, acted accordingly. In 1979, Brown blocked the showing of the comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
, “Monty Python’s Life of Brian”. Brown asked Baton Rouge magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
distributors not to offer the March 1977 issue of Hustler
Hustler
Hustler is a monthly pornographic magazine aimed at men and published in the United States. It was first published in 1974 by Larry Flynt. It was a step forward from the Hustler Newsletter which was cheap advertising for his strip club businesses at the time. The magazine grew from a shaky start to...
, which a state court judge in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
ruled obscene.
In 1980, the black attorney Murphy Bell filed suit against the city of Baton Rouge and District Attorney Brown regarding civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
protection for African-American suspects. The suit, which stemmed from the accidental fatal shooting by police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
of a black teenager named Clarence Morrison, Jr. (born ca. 1963), claimed, among various allegations, that Brown had used the grand jury investigative procedure as a "legal backup" to support arbitrary actions by the police department. The city and Brown, however, prevailed in the initial court and on appeal.
Activities as DA
During his time as district attorney, Brown was elected president of both the Louisiana State and the National District Attorney's associations. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Baton Rouge RapeRape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
Crisis Center, the Pretrial Intervention Program, the Victim and Witness Assistance Program, and "I Care", a drug
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...
prevention program. Brown served too on the executive council of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement. He was chairman of the first child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
committee formed by the National District Attorney's Association. He wrote You and the Law, a book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
used in civics
Civics
Civics is the study of rights and duties of citizenship. In other words, it is the study of government with attention to the role of citizens ― as opposed to external factors ― in the operation and oversight of government....
classes in the East Baton Rouge Parish school system.
Civic leadership, death and legacy
He was a member of the advisory board of the Salvation ArmySalvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
and the executive committee of the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
Istrouma Council. He also worked in the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
The MDA Labor Day Telethon is an annual telethon in the United States to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association . The first MDA telethon was during the Thanksgiving Day weekend of 1952 and titled Party for MDA. It has been held annually since 1966...
. He hosted the Lions Club Crippled Children's Telethon. He supported the Louisiana Baptist Children's Home orphanage
Orphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
in Monroe
Monroe, Louisiana
Monroe is a city in and the parish seat of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,107, making it the eighth largest city in Louisiana. A July 1, 2007, United States Census Bureau estimate placed the population at 51,208, but 51,636...
. Since 1964, Brown had been an active member of the Florida Boulevard Baptist Church, where he taught the Fellowship Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
class. Earlier, he had been music director of various churches.
After he left the office of district attorney, Brown resumed his law practice until he retired in the year 2000 from the still existing Law Offices of Ossie Brown at 123 St. Ferdinand Street in Baton Rouge. One of the partners is Brown's son, Dana Brent Brown.
Services were held on August 30, 2008, at the Florida Avenue Baptist Church. Entombment was in the Green Oaks Memorial Park Mausoleum
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
. Brown was survived by his wife of forty-eight years, the former Faye Underwood (born November 5, 1931); two sons, Dana Brown (born July 10, 1962) and wife Natalie (born November 29, 1970) and Kirk Brown of Napa, California; daughter, Kelli B. Leon (born December 24, 1968) of Baton Rouge; four grandchildren, Brycyn Brown, Max Brown, and Alexa and Amber Leon; and four great-grandchildren.
Current EBR District Attorney Hillar Moore, III, told the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate that Brown "stood for certain principles and took positions that were always firm. He was always for the victims of crime." Moore said that when he worked for Brown as an investigator while he was still in college and that the DA "adopted me as a son."Moore, who supported Brown in the 1984 election, remained an investigator under DA Bryan Bush despite their partisan difference.