UPDATED: Judge John Ruffin, Jr. Dies

***3:50 p.m. Update January 31***

WJBF News Channel 6 has learned that autopsy reults showed that Judge ruffin died of heart disease, not a heart attack. The Fulton County investigators tell us that Judge ruffin's fall had nothing to do with his death. The fall and his death just coincidentally happened at the same time.

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Augusta, GA -- Ed Tarver, U.S. Attorney: “Jack Ruffin was extremely important to this community, that was one of the things that came to mind. And, I was shocked to hear that we had lost him. And, it was certainly unexpected."

Judge John Ruffin Jr., known as Jack, to his friends, was a pioneer. He was Augusta's first black Superior Court judge, the first black Court of Appeals judge, and the first black member of the Augusta Bar Association.

Tarver: "The issue that I think that would describe Judge Ruffin is that he fought for fairness and everyone to be treated the same. Without regard to how they looked, to who their parents were, to what color their skin was, and that's a huge mission for someone who was born and raised in Burke County, Georgia."

Ed Tarver, who just took over as the new US Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, says Judge Ruffin played an instrumental part in his professional career.

Tarver: "He was always there for me to give me guidance and to help me through some of the tough issues I encountered. And, to tell me when I was going in the wrong direction, so I appreciated him and look to him more as a parental figure than a friend."

Last year, after back and forth debate...Augusta Commissioners decided to name the new judicial center after Judge Ruffin. Commissioner Joe Bowles was the swing vote:

Joe Bowles, District 3 Commissioner: "He called me the next day and said, 'I never would have dreamt this in my life.' And I'm just honored and thrilled that we took action that day."

Judge Ruffin will be sorely missed by many in the CSRA. He spent much of his life fighting for equality, and the legacy he leaves behind proves it.

Bowles: "Besides all of the harsh treatment he received, he never once retaliated, and he was nothing but an honorable, and reputable man."

Tarver: "We want to celebrate what he meant to us, and make sure that we are going to do everything that we can to continue his legacy."

We're still waiting on autopsy results, but we're told he didn't have any sort of health problems. Until the day of his death, Judge Ruffin has been a visiting professor for Morehouse College. The funeral is tentatively set for Saturday, February 6th. at Tabernacle Baptist Church.