Senior federal judge Larry McKinney dies at age 73

Federal court officials in Indianapolis say senior U.S. District Judge Larry J. McKinney has died at age 73.

Court spokeswoman Doria Lynch says McKinney died overnight but the time of his death has not yet been determined.

Lynch says McKinney’s death was “very unexpected and very sudden and a shock to all of us.”

The court announced McKinney’s death in a statement Thursday asking for prayers for his wife, children and grandchildren.

McKinney was appointed a district court judge for the Southern District of Indiana in July 1987. He became a senior judge in July 2009.

Prior to joining the federal court McKinney served more than eight years as a Johnson Circuit Court judge. He previously was a state deputy attorney general and had worked in private practice.