Austin John Murphy (June 17, 1927 – April 13, 2024) was an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from 1977 to 1995.
Personal life
Born in North Charleroi, Pennsylvania, to Austin John Murphy Sr. and the former Evelyn F. Spence, Murphy grew up in New London, Connecticut. He later returned to Charleroi and served in the United States Marine Corps from 1944 to 1946. He earned a B.A. at Duquesne University in 1949 and an LL.B. at the University of Pittsburgh in 1952 and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1953. He practiced law in Washington, Pennsylvania, and was an assistant district attorney for Washington County from 1956 to 1957.[citation needed]
Murphy married Elieen Ramona McNamara Murphy on March 1, 1953, and they had seven children, 19 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren. Mona died March 1, 2016, in Nevada. Austin died on April 13, 2024, at age 96. He was survived by six of his seven children, 16 of the 19 grandchildren, and 16 of the 17 great-grandchildren.[1][2]
Political career
Murphy started his political career as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, where he served from 1959 to 1971. He then served in the Pennsylvania State Senate from 1971 to 1977.[3][4] In 1976, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives, replacing longtime incumbent Thomas E. Morgan.[5] He served as a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1984 and 1988.
Scandals
Murphy was reprimanded by the 100th Congress in December 1987 for ghost voting and misusing House funds. He diverted government resources to his former law firm, had a ghost employee on his House payroll and had someone else cast votes for him in the House. The scandal ultimately led to his decision not to seek reelection in 1994.[6]
In May 1999, Murphy was indicted by a Fayette County grand jury of engaging in voter fraud. He was charged with forgery, conspiracy and tampering with public records. Murphy insisted that he was only trying to help elderly nursing home residents fill out paperwork that accompanied an absentee ballot. According to the grand jury, Murphy and two others forged absentee ballots for residents of the nursing home and then added Murphy's wife, Eileen Murphy, as a write-in candidate for township election judge. The next month, following closed-door negotiations, all but one of the voter fraud charges were dropped. Following the hearing, he left the building by a back door to avoid an angry crowd outside. He was sentenced to six months probation and fifty hours of community service.[7]
See also
- List of American federal politicians convicted of crimes
- List of federal political scandals in the United States
- List of United States representatives expelled, censured, or reprimanded
References
- ^ Hundt, Brad (April 17, 2024). "Austin Murphy, longtime congressman, regional political leader, dies at 96". Observer-Reporter. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
- ^ "Austin Murphy Obituary (1927–2024) – Monongahela, PA – Observer-Reporter". Legacy.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
- ^ Cox, Harold (2004). "Pennsylvania Senate – 1977–1978" (PDF). Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 8, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
- ^ Cox, Harold. "Senate Members "M"". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University. Archived from the original on April 8, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
- ^ Barone, Michael; Ujifusa, Grant (1987). The Almanac of American Politics 1988. p. 1056.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^ "Austin murphy won't run again democrat beset by controversies leaving congress". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 19, 1994. Archived from the original on June 17, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2009.
- ^ Heltzel, Bill (June 22, 1999). "Six of seven charges against Austin Murphy dismissed". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
- "Murphy arraigned on vote-fraud charges". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. May 25, 1999.
- "Most charges against austin murphy dismissed". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 22, 1999.
External links
- United States Congress. "Austin Murphy (id: M001088)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on 2008-02-15
- Appearances on C-SPAN
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