Charles S. Reid

Charles Simpson Reid (1898 – November 7, 1947)[1] was chief justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia from 1938 to 1943.

Born in Blairsville, Georgia, Reid attended Young Harris College and graduated from Atlanta Law School in 1918.[1] After working his way up from being a bank teller to bank vice president, he joined with partners to form the law firm of Little Powell and Reid, and became Georgia Democratic executive committee chairman. In 1938, Governor Eurith D. Rivers appointed Reid chief justice of the state supreme court, making the 41-year-old the youngest chief justice in the United States at the time.[1]

Reid resigned from the court to join the United States Army during World War II, where he was on the staff of General Dwight D. Eisenhower as chief of the property control division. Following the war, he worked on the staff of Lucius D. Clay, who was the military governor of American-occupied Germany.[1] After returning to Georgia, Reid was given charge of the estate for the benefit of Georgia Baptist Children's Home. When funds under his supervision went missing and an inquiry was scheduled, he committed suicide by jumping from a twelfth-story window.[1][2]

Reid married Agnes Baker, widow of Dr. Elliott L. Baker, shortly before joining the military.[1]