1/14/14 - A former federal judge and Michigan Supreme Court justice who lived in Howell has passed away. Patricia Boyle died Monday at the age of 76 due to respiratory failure while visiting a relative in Florida. She had been living in Howell and is survived by her four children and five grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are pending. Boyle relinquished a lifetime appointment as a federal judge after five years to become a Michigan Supreme Court justice, a post she held for 15 years until retiring at the end of 1998. Chief Justice Robert Young Jr. says Boyle brought a "sharp legal mind and profound integrity" to her tenure on the Supreme Court. During her earlier work as a Wayne County Prosecutor and member of the Michigan Womenâs Task Force on Rape, Boyle helped draft a comprehensive reform of state laws on criminal sexual conduct. The legislation was used as a model by numerous other states and has been described as the most successful rape law reform measure in the nation. (JM)
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