Mary Pallotta, 88, longtime judge in mental illness cases

By J.E. Geshwiler

For the AJC

Mary Pallotta's interest in the law came as part of her genetic code. Both her grandfathers, plus uncles on both sides of her family, were attorneys, said her brother, Dr. Thomas Dozier of Celina, Ohio.

More than 60 years after the fact, Dr. Dozier still recalls watching his sister prepare for her bar exam.

"She'd sit in a rocker on our family's front porch studying the Georgia Code -- a book that must have been seven-inches thick -- rocking and reading, rocking and reading," he said.

She studied well, passing the exam after only a year at Atlanta Law School, and was admitted to the bar in 1945, when few women practiced law in Georgia. Later she earned a J.D. degree from Emory University School of Law and a master's in political science from Georgia State University.

"Mary balanced her career and her family life so smoothly, even making time to go to graduate school," said her longtime neighbor, Peggy Paulin of Atlanta.

Mary Pallotta, 88, of Atlanta, died May 15 of Alzheimer's disease complications at Delmar Gardens Nursing Home, Smyrna. Her memorial service is at 11 a.m. Saturday at H.M. Patterson & Son, Spring Hill. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, D.C. 20090-6011.

After passing the bar, she lived for a time in New York City where she met an advertising executive, Frank Pallotta. They were married in Atlanta, and she resumed her legal career while he became advertising director for Rich's Department Store. Mr. Pallotta, since deceased, is credited with creating two Atlanta traditions -- the Lighting of the Great Tree and the Pink Pig monorail ride.

Mrs. Pallotta worked for the Atlanta Legal Aid Society and the DeKalb County Department of Children and Family Services, but spent most of her career as a hearing officer and later as administrative law judge for Georgia's Department of Human Services, retiring at age 80 in 2001.

For 29 years, it was her job to determine whether to commit persons with mental illness to state hospitals and whether to release those who were recovering.

Mary Huiet of Tyrone, her longtime secretary, said Mrs. Pallotta would travel to mental health facilities around the state conducting hearings, then return to Atlanta to analyze testimony and render her decisions. She was well-read in the literature on mental illness, Ms. Huiet said, and she treated each person involved in the process with kindness and compassion.

Weighing the sometimes conflicting testimony of mental health professionals, social workers and lawyers representing patients can be a difficult, even painful process.

Barbara Brown of Atlanta, an administrative law judge who like Mrs. Pallotta has handled numerous mental illness institutionalization cases, said she developed the highest respect for her colleague's skill and expertise in resolving these contentious issues.

"We shared one other thing," Ms. Brown said, "a love of cats. Mary had a dozen of them, seven outside and five inside. And she was so conscientious about their care. It seemed like she went to the veterinarian's office more often than she went to the grocery."

Mrs. Pallotta was a lovely person, inside and out, said her neighbor, Mrs. Paulin. "With her porcelain-like features, she never seemed to age," she said.

"Mary cared about her appearance," Mrs. Paulin continued. "She would have her hair done every week and always dressed fashionably. I never saw her wear pants."

Survivors also include a son, Frank B. Pallotta of Woodstock; a sister, Kathryn Bankston of Atlanta, and three grandchildren.