`Marshal Marshall' - John Marshall

Ebony, August, 2000 by Kelly Starling

Thurgood Marshall's son is first Black to head U.S. Marshals Service

SITTING in an office surrounded by snapshots of people and moments in his life, John Marshall recalls the day--February 1, 2000--he was formally sworn-in as the first Black director of the U.S. Marshals Service. His family was there. So were heavyweights such as Attorney General Janet Reno and a U.S. senator.

But one important person was missing--his father, Thurgood Marshall Sr., who died in 1993. The younger Marshall says he could feel his dad's presence as he placed his hand on a time-worn Bible used to swear-in Justice Marshall decades before.

"It was the same Bible he used, opened to the same page, so actually my hand was where his hand was," John Marshall says. "That connection was there." Like his father, the first Black Supreme Court justice, Marshall strode into history in a landmark role. He is not only the first African-American to head the country's oldest federal law enforcement agency, he is also the first former U.S. marshal to earn that title.

"It is entirely appropriate," Attorney General Reno said at the ceremony, "that the son should serve in law enforcement and help in the effort to implement the judicial decisions of the father ... yet again showing the seamless fabric that covers our nation."

As leader of the Marshals Service, Marshall oversees an estimated 4,000 employees who help protect federal judicial officials, including judges, attorneys, jurors and federal witnesses. They also investigate and apprehend federal fugitives, and transport federal prisoners. His days are a rush of meetings to address the nation's challenges and to get the resources his agency needs. That includes more money to hire more staff.

"We have a staffing shortage to a point where it's difficult for us to carry out our missions," Marshall says. "We do it. But it's often under very difficult circumstances."

He is also continuing efforts made by his predecessor to diversify the agency. "I'm certainly proud to be the first [Black director], but I think it's long overdue," he says. The Marshals Service has made inroads through recruiting more women and more people of color. "But the numbers still aren't where I want them," Marshall says.

One of his favorite duties is spending time in the field, visiting marshals at each of the 94 districts in his care. Unlike former directors of the Marshals Service, Marshall has been in their place. Colleagues used to call him "[M.sup.2]," short for "Marshal Marshall." "He knows what the average deputy is going through," says John F. Clark, who was chief deputy for Marshall and now serves as acting U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Virginia. "He brings with him a different knowledge level than previous directors have had. This is the greatest thing that has happened since I've served."

Marshall also stands out in other ways. As much as he prizes his official status, he values his family more. At first glance, his office looks like a typical executive suite with its official emblems and view overlooking Reagan National Airport. But a closer look reveals touches of home: A poem from his daughter Cecilia; photos taken by his daughter Melonie; pictures of his mother, Cecilia Suyat Marshall and brother, Thurgood Jr.; and his wife Jean. He surrounds himself with familiar faces at work but is careful to leave the office behind when he departs, a habit he learned from his father, he says. "He rarely talked about work at home," remembers Marshall, "though you could tell a lot of times he was working in his mind. He would sit in front of the TV, but he probably couldn't tell you what had been on for the last hour. But as far as actually discussing cases or if he had a bad day, he did an unbelieveable job of not bringing that home."

Marshall says he first realized his father's prominence when he was 7. "I met President Johnson at the White House when my father was appointed Solicitor-General," he says. "I saw all the cameras and people and realized he must be pretty important." But their home remained untouched by his celebrity. He and his father would get up early on weekends while his mother and brother, the late-risers, slept. They would noisily make toast for themselves, hoping to wake them up, he laughs.

It would take a few more years for Marshall to understand the magnitude of his father's work. "As I matured, I began to understand more about the Civil Rights Movement," he says. "My brother and I knew he had an important position, and we needed to make sure that we did nothing to embarrass him." Marshall says his parents returned their respect by giving them freedom in their decisions. "There was never any pressure to enter a certain career," he says. "It was just pick an occupation you wanted and be good at it."

Marshall made his choice when he was a senior at Georgetown University. While working part-time at a local grocery store, he met a Virginia State Trooper who worked there in his spare time. Fascinated, he left the school, where he only needed 12 hours to graduate, and joined the state agency. It was at that same store that he met his wife, Jean, who came in one day with her mother.