Katie Hall, American politician, U.S. Representative from Indiana (1982–1985) died she was 73

 Katie Beatrice Hall , served as a U.S. Representative from Indiana from 1982 to 1985 died she was 73.

(April 3, 1938 – February 20, 2012)

Life and career

She was born Katie Beatrice Green in Mound Bayou, Bolivar County, Mississippi. She attended the public schools of Mound Bayou. Hall received a B.S. from Mississippi Valley State University, Itta Bena, Mississippi in 1960 and an M.S. from Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana in 1968.
Hall served as a member of the Indiana House of Representatives 1974–1976 and a member of the Indiana Senate 1976–1982. She was a delegate to the Democratic Mini Convention in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1978. Hall chaired the Indiana State Democratic convention in 1980. Following the sudden death of Congressman Adam Benjamin, Jr. in September 1982, Hall won a special election to fill the vacancy. She was appointed the Democratic nominee over more experienced candidates by the black mayor of Gary, Indiana who was also serving as the head of the 1st District's Democratic committee. She would go on to defeat the Republican candidate (who spent just $10,000 in his campaign) in the 1982 general election by only 56% to 43% despite it being an overwhelmingly Democratic district.
In her first Democratic primary in 1984, she faced two white candidates, former Benjamin aide Peter Visclosky and Lake County prosecutor Jack Crawford. Many thought Visclosky and Crawford would split the anti-Hall vote, but Visclosky prevailed with 34% to Hall's 33% and Crawford's 31%. Hall ultimately served as a Democrat in the last months the 97th Congress and the entire term of the 98th Congress. Hall led the Capitol Hill drive to make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday a national holiday. On November 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed the bill into law.
Following her primary defeat she became vice chair of the Gary, Indiana Housing Board of Commissioners. She later served as city clerk of Gary, Indiana from 1985 to 1993. In both 1988 and 1990 she made unsuccessful attempts against Visclosky in the Democratic primaries.
In May 2002, Hall, again serving as Gary City Clerk, and her daughter, Chief Deputy Clerk Junifer Hall, were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering, extortion, and mail fraud. Junifer Hall was also charged with five counts of perjury. Katie Hall eventually pleaded guilty to mail fraud and was sentenced to house arrest and probation. Junifer Hall was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison.^[1]
Katie Hall died on February 20, 2012 at 11:23 A.M., of heart failure.
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