Joseph David Selby was a Cheyenne

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...

 lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 who served as municipal judge

Judge

A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

 from 1978–1982 and as a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 member of the Wyoming House of Representatives

Wyoming House of Representatives

The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal amount of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of at least 9,000. The House convenes at the Wyoming...

 from District 41 in Laramie County

Laramie County, Wyoming

Laramie County is the most populous of the 23 counties of the U.S. state of Wyoming. The county is located in the southeastern corner of the state. The county's population was 91,738 at the 2010 census. The county seat is Cheyenne, the state capital...

 from 1995-1997.

Selby was born in Monaca

Monaca, Pennsylvania

Monaca is a borough in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States along the Ohio River, northwest of Pittsburgh. Monaca was first incorporated as Phillipsburg in 1840, and had been known by that name since the 1820s. In 1892, the name of the borough was changed to Monaca in honor of the Native...

 in Beaver County

Beaver County, Pennsylvania

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 181,412 people, 72,576 households, and 50,512 families residing in the county. The population density was 418 people per square mile . There were 77,765 housing units at an average density of 179 per square mile...

, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, west of Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...

, to Frank G. Selby (1922–1996) and Nellie Selby (1923–1992). He earned his law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

 degree from the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

 in Charlottesville

Charlottesville, Virginia

Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...

 in 1975 and his MBA from the University of Wyoming

University of Wyoming

The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...

 in Laramie

Laramie, Wyoming

Laramie is a city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 30,816 at the . Located on the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming, the city is west of Cheyenne, at the junction of Interstate 80 and U.S. Route 287....

. He was active in the alumni associations of both institutions.

An attorney in private practice, Selby specialized in real estate

Real estate

In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...

 and bankruptcy

Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....

 law. He was appointed city judge by Mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 Don Erickson

Don Erickson

Don Lee Erickson was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1958.-External links:...

 (1977–1989) and confirmed by the Cheyenne City Council. He was succeeded as judge by Douglas Munch. Selby won his legislative seat in 1994 by defeating the Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Mac McGraw. However, Selby was unable to cement a hold on the district and was unseated in 1996 by McGraw, 1,893-1,651. Selby's father died four days after Selby lost his legislative race. Selby attempted a comeback in 1998 but lost by an even larger margin to McGraw, 1,751-1,185. The seat is now held by the Democrat Ken Esquibel.

An active member of St. Mary's Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 Cathedral and the Kiwanis Club, Selby died in Cheyenne after a long battle with cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular disease

Heart disease or cardiovascular disease are the class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels . While the term technically refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular system , it is usually used to refer to those related to atherosclerosis...

. Selby and his wife, Kathryn L. "Kate" Selby (born ca. 1952) had two sons and three daughters.

Three other former Cheyenne lawmakers died within two months of Selby's passing: Democrat Edwin H. Whitehead

Edwin H. Whitehead

Edwin H. "Ed" Whitehead was a lawyer in Cheyenne, a former Democratic member of the Wyoming House of Representatives, and an early supporter of John F...

 on May 20 and Republicans Larry D. Shippy

Larry D. Shippy

Larry Deleo Shippy was a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives, having served in Laramie County District 8, including part of Cheyenne, from 1993–1996. Shippy was known for his efforts to expand the privatizing of government services...

 on June 8 and Robert Schliske

Robert Schliske

Robert Paul Edward Schliske, I , was a founder of Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne and a former Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives. He served in the House from 1971-1975 during the administration of Republican Governor Stanley K...

 on June 21, 2007. In September, former Representative Dean T. Prosser

Dean T. Prosser

Dean T. Prosser, Jr. , was a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives from 1971–1983, who authored major environmental legislation to preserve the Wyoming landscape. Prosser was also the executive secretary and then the executive vice-president of the influential Wyoming...

, a leader in environmental legislation from 1971–1983, died in Rhode Island

Rhode Island

The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

, where he had previously retired.