John W. Preston

Born in Woodbury, Tennessee, his parents were Hugh L. Preston and Thankful C. Preston, née Doak. In 1894, when he was 17 years of age, he obtained his undergraduate degree from Burritt College. In 1897, at the age of 19, he was admitted to the bar in Tennessee.[2]

In 1902, he moved to Ukiah, California.[3] In 1908, he was appointed to the state legislature.[4][2] He served until 1910.[3] From 1914 through 1918, he served as United States Attorney for the Northern District of California.[5][3]

In November 1926, Preston was elected as Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court for the remaining four-year term ending January 5, 1931, of Thomas J. Lennon, who died in August.[6][4][7][8] In November 1930, he successfully ran for a full term and was re-elected.[9] In June 1935, Preston announced he would retire before the end of his term to serve as special government attorney in the Elk Hills naval oil reserves case, part of the Teapot Dome scandal.[10] On October 6, 1935, he stepped down from the bench and was replaced by Nathaniel P. Conrey.[11]

While on the Supreme Court, Preston is perhaps best known for acting as prosecutor at the 1930 pardon hearing of Warren K. Billings, who was convicted in connection with the 1916 Preparedness Day Bombing.[12][13][14][15]

After retiring from the Supreme Court, he continued to practice law.[16] Preston died on February 18, 1958, in San Francisco.[17]

His brother, Hugh L. Preston, was a judge of the Mendocino County Superior Court for 11 years, and in May 1931 was appointed by Governor James Rolph as an associate justice to the California Court of Appeal, Third District.[18]

• John W. Preston. California Supreme Court Historical Society. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
• Past & Present Justices. California State Courts. Retrieved July 19, 2017.

• List of justices of the Supreme Court of California