Frank Murphy Hall of Justice
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The Frank Murphy Hall of Justice is a vacant building in Detroit, Michigan. Prior to its closure in late 2024, the building housed the Criminal Division of the Wayne County Circuit Court and the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.[1] The building is slated for demolition.[2][3]
The structure was designed in the brutalist style by Eberle M. Smith & Associated in 1968 to house Detroit Recorder's Court and contained 22 court suites with detention facilities.[4] It was named to honor Murphy who served as Mayor of Detroit, Governor of Michigan, United States Attorney General and Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. In 1997, the state legislature merged Recorder's Court into the Wayne County Circuit Court.[5]
In 1970, the UAW presented a casting of Carl Milles sculpture The Hand of God as a memorial to Murphy. The sculpture resided on the plaza outside the building until its closure.[6]
References
[edit]- ↑ Craig, Kimberly (August 23, 2024). "Veterans of criminal law take a look back as Detroit's Frank Murphy Hall of Justice closes down". WXYZ News. Retrieved September 9, 2025.
- ↑ Aguilar, Louis (August 15, 2024). "Bedrock to begin demo on Wayne County jail facilities once new complex opens". The Detroit News. Retrieved September 9, 2025.
- ↑ Gallagher, John. "Greektown fights back against years of decline with sweeping new concepts". Detroit Free Press.
- ↑ Meyer, Katharine Mattingly (1980). McElroy, Martin C. P. (ed.). Detroit architecture: A.I.A. guide (Revised ed.). Wayne State University Press. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-8143-1651-1. Retrieved August 2, 2026.
- ↑ "History of Michigan's Judicial System". Michigan Supreme Court Learning Center. Archived from the original on 2006-09-02. Retrieved August 2, 2026.
- ↑ "The Hand of God, Memorial to Frank Murphy, (sculpture)". Smithsonian American Art Museum: Art Inventories Catalog. Retrieved August 2, 2026.