| Leroy Tyus | |
| Death Date: | October 15, 1998 |
| Birth Date: | February 4, 1916 |
| Office: | Member of the Missouri General Assembly from the 63rd district |
| Termstart: | 1950 |
| Termend: | 1961 |
| Birth Place: | Brownsville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Death Place: | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Lane College, Lincoln University |
| Occupation: | Politician, real estate developer |
| Resting Place: | Calvary Cemetery and Mausoleum, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
Eddie Leroy Tyus (1916–1998)[1] [2] also known as LeRoy Tyus, was an American politician, real estate developer, and state legislator in Missouri. Tyus represented St. Louis as a democrat in the Missouri House of Representatives from 1950 to 1961.[3] [4] Also known as E. Leroy Tyus.
Leroy Tyus was born in Brownsville, Tennessee. He attended Lane College, and Lincoln University law school. He was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Tyus represented St. Louis (in the 63rd District, and 20th Ward) as a democrat in the Missouri House of Representatives for five terms, from 1950 to 1961. He pushed for desegregation, and while in office he unsuccessfully pushed for a bill that would desegregate the schools. He was a Democratic Committee member in the 20th Ward for 23 years. He retired from politics in 1983.
In 1984, Tyus was one of six people indicted in a cable television case, they were charged with conspiracy and attempted extortion.[5] [6] The others involved in the legal case included Sorkis Webbe Jr., an alderman in the 7th Ward; Sorkis Webbe Sr., a powerful St. Louis politician; Thomas E. Zych, politician and president of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen; James D. Cullen, Jr. a lawyer; and Eugene P. Slay, a businessman. The courts convicted the six people, but it was later appealed and the case was overturned and Zych was acquitted.[7]
He died from complications of a heart attack on October 15, 1998, at the Vencor Hospital in St. Louis. His the namesake of Tyus Court in St. Louis.