Born in Metropolis, Illinois, Foreman was in the United States Navy from 1945 to 1946.
He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 1950, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1952.
He was the assistant state attorney general of Illinois from 1953 to 1960, and then a state's attorney of Massac County, Illinois until 1964.
[1] On February 16, 1972, Foreman was nominated by President Richard Nixon to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois vacated by Judge William George Juergens.
He then served as Chief Judge of his new district until 1992, assuming senior status on June 1, 1992, and assuming inactive senior status May 12, 2007.