Justices Brennan and Marshall

It was indeed refreshing to read your editorial, praising the influence of Brennan and Marshall.

Their consistent support of this country’s most basic and enduring principles--the fundamental right of each citizen to due process and equal protection under the law regardless of race, sex, creed or economic status is to be admired.

In this era of President Reagan’s numerous conservative federal court appointments, Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese’s misguided stewardship of the Department of Justice, and conservative-led attacks on several members of our once esteemed California Supreme Court, Brennan and Marshall stand tall in their unrelenting pursuit of justice and human dignity for those in our society otherwise excluded from a system that so often caters to those more economically and organizationally powerful.

Their decisions in the areas of civil rights, education, discrimination against women and minorities, the First Amendment, capital punishment and the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition of unreasonable search and seizure among others, are indeed enlightened in a civilized society such as ours.

When these men of honor are gone, they will be sorely missed by those of us in this country who realize their presence and influence on our highest court was in keeping with the principles that have made this county great.

Let us hope their replacements are also men of such enlightenment and foresight. Let us further hope that Rehnquist and Scalia do not lead the court too far astray from these principles as they embark upon their vastly important new roles on the Supreme Court.

ROBERT J. McKENNON

Van Nuys