Amdahl served in World War II in the United States Army Air Force[3] Signals Intelligence Service, renamed as the National Security Agency (NSA), as a cryptologist within the European theater.
After flying in and going ashore three days after the D-Day invasion of Normandy Beach,[4] Douglas K. Amdahl coordinated efforts to decrypt German enigma communication and was briefly a tank commander at the Battle of the Bulge despite previously being prohibited from combat due to his poor eyesight.
The creation of the appeals court enabled a quicker resolution to cases and provided additional oversight in the judicial process.
As a Hennepin County chief judge, he cut the ribbon, recommended the design of the judicial chambers, and campaigned for funding.
"[citation needed] Amdahl worked to fund the construction of the Minnesota Judicial Center - spearheading designs with his friend United States Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger[9] - who also graduated from the Saint Paul College of law[10][11] (later known as William Mitchell College of Law).
Amdahl sent a letter to then United States Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist "asking him to be here in April of this year for the dedication of the building.