Judge Roszkowski dies at 91

ROCKFORD, Ill. - A long-serving judge whom a federal courthouse in northern Illinois is named for has died.

The clerk for the Northern District of Illinois announced the death of Stanley J. Roszkowski Wednesday. He was 91. Roszkowski for years advocated for a permanent Rockford courthouse. A bill President Barack Obama signed in 2009 named the city's new federal courthouse after him. The Stanley J. Roszkowski U.S. Courthouse opened in 2011.

In the clerk's statement the district's chief judge praises Roszkowski's service flying combat missions in World War II. Ruben Castillo calls Roszkowski "a true American hero."

President Jimmy Carter nominated Roszkowski to the bench in 1977. Roszkowski was based in Chicago and then Rockford before retiring in 1988.

He died Monday in Rockford. Wednesday's statement doesn't provide a cause of death.