U.S. District judge dies at 69

U.S. District Judge Richard Dorr died April 24 at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, while undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer. Dorr was 69.

Nominated by former President George W. Bush to serve on the federal bench, Dorr was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as a judge for the U.S. Court for the Western District of Missouri on Aug. 1, 2002.

Dorr was the recipient of two Law Day honors from the Springfield Metropolitan Bar Association. He received the Excellence in the Judiciary Award in 2009 and the Equal Access to Justice Award in 1995, according to a news release. 

He began working in private law in 1973 with the Springfield-based firm of Mann, Walter, Burkart, Weathers & Walter LC. Dorr would later practice as a partner with Harrison, Tucker and Dorr and then with the firm of Dorr, Baird and Lightner. In 1996, he joined Husch Blackwell LLP, then Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin, and took on management of the firm’s Springfield office, according to his obituary. 

A memorial service, with military honors, is scheduled for 2 p.m. May 7, at Drury University’s Clara Thompson Hall. The Richard E. Dorr Scholarship Fund has been structured to receive memorial donations through Central Trust and Investment Company, 3333 S. National, Springfield, MO 65807.

Dorr is survived by his wife of 47 years, Barbie; son Scott and his wife Tracy; grandchildren Kaleah, Elijah and Jordan; brother Robert and his wife Barbara, and their children Tom and Dan, according to his obituary.