J. Spencer Bell

Jesse Spencer Bell
1927 Duke University Yearbook (age 21)
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
In office September 27, 1961 – March 19, 1967 (death)
Nominated by	President John F. Kennedy
North Carolina Senate
In office 1957–1961
Personal details
Born	(1906-04-01)April 1, 1906 Charlotte, North Carolina
Died	March 19, 1967(1967-03-19) (aged 60)
Alma mater	Duke University (B.A.) University of North Carolina School of Law (LL.B.)
Occupation	federal judge, lawyer
Committees	Bell Commission (1950s)
Military service
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	World War II

Jesse Spencer Bell (April 1, 1906 – March 19, 1967) was a United States federal judge.

Bell was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received a B.A. from Duke University in 1927 and an LL.B. from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1930. He also studied at Harvard Law School. Bell was in private practice of law in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1930 to 1961, except for service during World War II in the United States Army. He was a Member of the North Carolina Senate from 1957 to 1961. In the 1950s, he chaired the Committee on Improving and Expediting the Administration of Justice in North Carolina, also known as the Bell Commission. He was a delegate to the 1960 Democratic National Convention.

Bell was a federal judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Bell was nominated by President John F. Kennedy on September 14, 1961, to a new seat created by 75 Stat. 80; he was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 23, 1961, and received his commission on September 27, 1961. Bell served until his death at the age of 60.

Sources

• J. Spencer Bell at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.

• Jesse Spencer Bell Papers