Politics / Law
L. Brooks Patterson
1939–2019 · lawyer, prosecutor, Oakland County executive
Detroit-born, U of D Jesuit-educated Republican who ran affluent Oakland County for 27 years (1992–2019), famous for its AAA bond rating and for provocative remarks about Detroit.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
aged 80- Birth name
- Lewis Brooks Patterson
- Also known as
- Lewis Brooks Patterson · Brooks Patterson
- Detroit years
- 1939–1967
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
L. Brooks Patterson was born in Detroit in 1939, graduated from the University of Detroit Jesuit High School in 1957, served in the Army and earned his bachelor's and law degrees at the University of Detroit, completing law school in 1967. He then moved to Oakland County and opened a practice in Pontiac, where he represented Irene McCabe, leader of the white anti-busing movement, and became a polarizing opponent of court-ordered school integration. He served sixteen years as Oakland County prosecutor and in 1992 was elected county executive, winning six terms. He presided over the county's growth into one of the wealthiest in the nation and kept its AAA bond rating, but his blunt and often racially charged comments about Detroit, in interviews and speeches, drew repeated condemnation from city leaders. A 2012 car crash left him using a wheelchair, yet he stayed in office. He died in 2019 while still serving, months after announcing a cancer diagnosis.
Highlights
- Oakland County executive, 1992–2019
- Oakland County prosecutor for sixteen years
- Kept Oakland County's AAA bond rating
- Graduate of U of D Jesuit (1957) and the University of Detroit School of Law (1967)
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · 1953–1957
University of Detroit Jesuit High School
The Jesuit prep school from which he graduated in 1957; he was named its alumnus of the year in 2005.