TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Former Florida Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis was lying in state Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n
Lewis died May 26 in Tallahassee at the age of 78. Lewis was in the Florida Supreme Court rotunda Thursday ahead of a memorial service at the Florida Supreme Court Courtroom Friday.<\/p>\n
Lewis was appointed by Gov. Lawton Chiles in 1998 and was a Chief Justice from 2006 to 2008. He served on the state\u2019s highest court until he retired in 2019.<\/p>\n
Chief Justice Carlos Mu\u00f1iz shared his thoughts on Lewis\u2019 legacy.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach of us who is given the privilege to serve on this court hopes to do so honorably. And each of us seeks, for whatever time we\u2019re allotted, to contribute to the common good of our fellow Floridians. Justice Lewis did both, and for that our court and state will always be grateful,\u201d Mu\u00f1iz said.<\/p>\n
Lewis considered his greatest professional accomplishment to be his education outreach, as he would travel to schools to engage with students about civil liberties and justice. <\/p>\n
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