Memorial service scheduled for Judge Finney, first African-American Chief Justice

The public is invited to pay their respects for a man known for his dedication to education and social justice.

The first African-American Chief Justice, the late Judge Ernest Adophus Finney Jr., served in the House of Representatives from 1973-1976 and became the first African-American circuit court judge in South Carolina.

Finney died Sunday at the age of 86.

On April 3, 1985, Finney was elected as associate justice of the S.C. Supreme Court and as chief justice on May 11, 1994.

A memorial viewing service for Finney will be 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday in the Rotunda of the South Carolina Supreme Court building, 1231 Gervais St. in Columbia.

A service will be 3 p.m.-7 p.m. at the Palmer Memorial Chapel in Columbia.

Public visitation will be 4 p.m.-7 p.m. Friday at the Neal Jones Auditorium on the campus of Morris College in Sumter, a releases states.

Finney practiced law in Sumter for years.

At 10 a.m. Saturday, a public funeral service will be held at the James and Dorothy Z. Elmore Chapel on the campus of Claflin University.

Finney was a 1952 graduate of Claflin and served on the board of trustees of the historically black university.

Finney is survived by his wife of 64 years Frances D. Finney, his three children, five grandchildren, a stepmother and other family members, former students, friends and colleagues, a release states.

Donations may be made to the the Ernest A. Finney, Jr. Fund, which supports scholarships for Claflin University students.

This story was originally published December 6, 2017 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Memorial service scheduled for Judge Finney, first African-American Chief Justice."