William F. Tompkins
| William F. Tompkins | |
|---|---|
| New Jersey State Assembly | |
|
In office November 1950 – March 1953 |
|
| Preceded by | Percy A. Miller Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Reinhardt V. Metzger |
| U.S. Attorney for New Jersey | |
|
In office March 1953 – July 1954 |
|
| Preceded by | Grover C. Richman Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Raymond Del Tufo Jr. |
| Assistant U.S. Attorney General | |
|
In office 1954–1958 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
William Finley Tompkins February 26, 1913 Newark, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | July 6, 1989 (aged 76) Bermuda |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Jane Bryant Tompkins |
| Religion | Presbyterian |
William Finley Tompkins (February 26, 1913 – July 6, 1989) is an American Republican Party politician who served as the U.S. Attorney from New Jersey and as a member of the New Jersey General Assembly.
Tompkins was born in Newark, New Jersey on February 26, 1913, the son of William Brydon Tompkins (1866-1918) and Elizabeth Lillian Finley (1883-1967). His family emigrated to the United States from England in the 1600s. He was a graduate of Wesleyan University and Rutgers University Law School. He served as a United States Army Lieutenant during World War II and he later prosecuted war crimes charges in Singapore. He was a partner at the Newark law firm of Lum, Fairlie & Foster.
In 1950, Tompkins was elected the New Jersey State Assembly, winning a special election to fill the unexpired term of Assemblyman Percy A. Miller Jr., who had been appointed New Jersey Commissioner of Labor by Governor Alfred Driscoll. Tompkins defeated Democrat John J. Egan 125,276 to 120,238, with 4,224 votes going to Progressive Party candidate William Johnston. He was re-elected to a second term in 1951 representing Essex County.
President Dwight Eisenhower nominated Tompkins to serve as the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey in 1953, succeeding Grover C. Richman Jr..
He resigned in 1954 when Eisenhower appointed him to serve as Assistant U.S. Attorney General, in charge of the Internal Security Division, established to counter subversive activities. He successfully prosecuted Soviet spy master Rudolf Ivanovich Abel. With a reputation as a racket-buster, Tompkins won a denaturalization order and indictment against mobster Albert Anastasia, who was found guilty and jailed on federal income tax evasion charges. Tompkins supervised the conviction of over 100 Communist Party leaders for illegal and subversive activities. He served in the Eisenhower Administration until 1958.
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