Port Canaveral chairman and retired Coast Guard Rear Admiral Wayne Justice has died, according to a statement released Saturday by the Canaveral Port Authority. He was 70.
Justice had been absent from last week’s State of the Port address, during which fellow commissioner Kevin Markey remarked Justice had been “contending with a health issue that prevents him from joining us. We send our sincere hopes for his recovery.”
Justice was reelected to the commission in 2022 and was in the midst of serving his third four-year term. This year, he was serving for the third time as commission chair.
“He was a champion for the port, his beloved Coast Guard, and our port district community,” the port authority statement read. “His spirit, enthusiasm, leadership and passion for the maritime industry will be deeply missed. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his wife Barbara and his entire family.”
Justice wasn’t up for reelection again until 2026. A replacement on the board until then would be appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Justice was a Coast Guard Academy and Naval War College graduate. He spent 37 years in the Coast Guard, including 15 in Florida.
He spent 12 years serving on board Coast Guard cutters, including eight years in command, specializing in counter drug, illegal migration and search and rescue patrols, according to the port.
He also had three years as a military aide to both presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, responsible for the potential execution of nuclear codes.
The Coast Guard’s bio for Justice stated he assumed command of the Fifth Coast Guard District in June 2009, where he had the overall responsibility for the full range of Coast Guard maritime safety and security missions carried out in the mid-Atlantic region, which stretches from central New Jersey through North Carolina.
“In the course of his career, Rear Admiral Justice’s cutters seized 40 drug smuggling vessels, over 140 tons of marijuana and cocaine, arrested over 135 smugglers, and have interdicted and rescued over 4,500 Haitian, Chinese, Ecuadorian and Cuban migrants.” the Coast Guard bio stated.
His accolades included the Defense Superior Service Medal, four Legion of Merit awards, three Meritorious Service Medals and four Coast Guard Commendation Medals.
He retired as a 2-star rear admiral in June 2010.
