John William "Bill" Graves (born October 17, 1935)[1] is a former justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court, serving from 1995 to 2006.
[2] In 1953, his freshman year at Notre Dame, he became part of a group of seven friends called "The Gang" that also included future talk show host Phil Donahue.
[2] Graves was a judge advocate general in the United States Army, on active duty and as a reserve, for 35 years.
[2] After Justice Thomas B. Spain announced his retirement from the Kentucky Supreme Court in June 1995, Graves announced he would resign his position to seek Governor Brereton Jones's appointment to fill the vacancy and would be a candidate in the special election for the balance of Spain's term, which would not expire until January 1999.
[8] Rick Johnson, a justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals and a challenger from the 1995 special election, also sought the seat.