Gary W. Thomas

Gary W. Thomas (March 19, 1938 – April 3, 2017) was a Marin County, California prosecutor and Superior Court judge. Thomas was primarily known for his role in the Marin County Civic Center shootout in which he was taken hostage in a courtroom, along with Judge Harold Haley and three female jurors, by Jonathan Jackson and three inmates from San Quentin State Prison in what is widely speculated to be a failed attempt to free his brother, George Jackson, and the other two Soledad Brothers. Haley, Jonathan Jackson, and two of the inmates were killed during the escape attempt, and Thomas was paralyzed from the waist down. Background Thomas was a native of Great Falls, Montana. His father was James Walter Thomas, and his step-mother was Vera T. Thomas. Thomas and his family moved to San Francisco, California when he was nine years old, but he frequently returned to Montana during the summers to work on his uncle's cattle ranch. Thomas graduated from San Francisco's Riordan High School. After earning an academic scholarship to the University of San Francisco in 1955, he received a bachelor's degree in political science. Thomas received another scholarship and graduated from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1961. He joined the State Bar of California in 1962, then worked in private practice and as a deputy county prosecutor until 1969 when he was promoted to assistant district attorney. Thomas was also a member of the United States Air Force Reserve from 1962 to 1968. Thomas married Haley's niece, Maureen, around 1960. They were married for 57 years had two sons.