Former Missouri Rep. William Hungate (D), who wrote one of the articles of impeachment against President Richard Nixon, died in St. Louis from a blood clot in his brain. He was 84. [IMGCAP(1)]

A graduate of Harvard Law School, Hungate served overseas during World War II. He was first elected to represent Missouri’s 9th district in a 1963 special election.

At the height of his career, he served as a member of the Judiciary Committee during the Watergate scandal and investigated President Gerald Ford’s pardon of Nixon.

Hungate later became the chairman of the Judiciary subcommittee on criminal justice, which became well known to the public because it was the only Congressional committee before which Ford ever appeared during his time in the Oval Office. Its chairman became strongly associated with panel, as it came to be known as the “Hungate subcommittee.”

After retiring from Congress in 1977, Hungate served as a judge on the U.S. District Court in St. Louis from 1979 to 1992. While on the bench, he helped further the desegregation movement in St. Louis with his ruling in Liddell et al. v. Board of Education of City of St. Louis et al.

Members of the Missouri delegation have fond memories of him.

“William Hungate served Missouri and the United States with honor and integrity. The people of the 9th district were proud to call him one of our own. His perspective and insight will be missed by all of us,” Rep. Kenny Hulshof (R), who represents the same district that Hungate once did, said through a spokesperson.

A memorial service for Hungate, who is survived by his wife, two children and four grandchildren, will be held at 2 p.m. on June 30 at the Salem in Ladue United Methodist Church in St. Louis.

— Emma Dumain and Rob Silverblatt