Wallace Barton Boling

W. Barton Boling left this world a better place through his profession and his remarkable sense of humor. He was born in Fort Worth, Texas on February 9, 1932, and passed away peacefully at his home in El Paso, Texas on October 17, 2024, at the age of 92.

He attended Fort Worth public schools and graduated with honors from North Texas State College in 1951. In 1954, he graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in Austin. He served in the U.S. Army and was a member of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He attended the JAG school at the University of Virginia Law School where he finished at the top of his class. As the top graduate in his class, he was allowed to choose the state or country where he would be assigned. He asked to return to Texas and was assigned to Fort Bliss, Texas. And that’s how the family came to El Paso.

After leaving the military, Mr. Boling practiced law in El Paso and in the 1960’s, was twice elected District Attorney. While District Attorney, he appointed El Paso county’s first female Assistant District Attorney and El Paso’s first Hispanic First Assistant District Attorney.

Mr. Boling then served in the Law Enforcement Division of the Texas Attorney General’s Office under five Attorney Generals. Attorney General John Hill, in a speech to the El Paso Bar Association, stated that Mr. Boling was one of the finest lawyers in the state. During General Hill’s term, Mr. Boling opened the West Texas Regional Office of the Attorney General’s Office. He also served as the Chief of the Criminal Law Enforcement Division of the Attorney General’s Office where he received commendations from District Attorneys throughout the West Region for his assistance to them, mainly in the area of federal habeas corpus litigation.

Mr. Boling was a lifelong Democrat and served with Janice Woods Windle, and the late William Hardie as the El Paso co-chairs of the Lyndon B. Johnson presidential campaign. He was also the State Democratic Committeeman for the 29th Senatorial District of Texas, which included El Paso, Hudspeth and Culberson counties and he was the first District Attorney to travel to those rural counties to try cases rather than sending an Assistant to do the job. In 1991, Mr. Boling was elected to the El Paso County Democratic Hall of Fame.

In addition to Democratic Party activities, Mr. Boling served on the boards of many local organizations including Memorial Park School, Project Bravo, Yucca Council of the BSA and the El Paso High School Band Boosters. He was also a past president of the Rim Area and Los Felinos homeowners’ associations. He was a member of the Rotary Club of El Paso, the First Baptist Church of El Paso, The El Paso Symphony Foundation, The Sun Bowl Association, the Coronado Country Club, the UTEP Center for Lifelong Learning, the UTEP Miner Athletic Club and a basketball season ticket holder from the opening of the Haskins Center until two years ago. Professionally, he was a member of the Texas and El Paso Bar Associations, serving as secretary of the EPBA and on several other committees. He served on the State Bar Grievance Prosecuting Committee and the Texas Supreme Court Seventeenth District Committee on Admissions to Practice Law. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association and the Texas Legislative Committee on Revision of the Texas Penal Code. Mr.Boling was admitted to practice in all Texas federal district courts and in the U.S. Supreme Court having been introduced to the Court by the late Congressman, Richard C. White.

Mr. Boling is survived by his wife of 74 years, LaNelle Boling, his son, Bart Jr., (Vanessa), son, David Boling (April), daughter, Ann Anchondo (Miguel), grandchildren, Laura Rocha (Alex), Lisa Huntsman (Galen), Anna Maria Anchondo (Juan Carlos Flores), Tatiana L. Anchondo (Jaime Galvan), William Boling and Susana Anchondo. He is also survived by three great grandchildren, Gianna Anchondo, Roman David Rocha and Romulo Miguel Galvan as well as several nieces and nephews who enjoyed his sense of humor and dubbed him “their favorite uncle.”

Mr. Boling established the LaNelle Boling Scholarship for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired in honor of his wife’s retirement from EPISD. The scholarship fund has helped to send 34 hearing impaired students to college. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the LaNelle Boling Scholarship Fund: El Paso Community Foundation P.O. Box 272, El Paso TX 79943 or epcf.org.