His father was dean of the now-closed Terrell Law School in Washington, D.C. Barrington attended Dunbar High School in Washington, and graduated from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania in 1936 with an Artium Baccalaureus degree in economics, and from the University of Pennsylvania in 1938 with a Master of Arts, finally receiving a Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago Law School in 1947.
[1] He died on June 2, 1993, at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, Maryland.
[2] Parker's most high-profile case was the criminal trial of John Hinckley Jr.[2] Parker also ordered the closure of the High Security Unit in Lexington, Kentucky, a women's prison wing used to house certain prisoners in isolation based on their political beliefs or affiliations.
Parker said in his ruling that: '"The treatment of the plaintiffs has skirted elemental standards of human decency.
The exaggerated security, small group isolation and staff harassment serve to constantly undermine the inmates' morale".