Gerry Spence 1738246 225824914 2008-07-15T16:00:25Z 72.56.184.203 /* Karen Silkwood */ less sophomoric style '''Gerry Spence''' (b. [[January 8]] [[1929]], [[Laramie, Wyoming]]) is a trial [[lawyer]]s in the [[United States]]. He has had more multi-million dollar verdicts without an intervening loss than any other lawyer in the US.{{act}} In 2008, he announced he would retire, at age 79, at the end of the [[Geoffrey Fieger]] trial in [[Detroit]], [[MI]]. Spence did not lose a criminal case in the over 50 years he practiced law.<ref>http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080602/METRO/806020407&imw=Y</ref> ==Background== Spence graduated from the [[University of Wyoming]] Law School in 1952. The University awarded him an honorary [[Doctor of Laws]] degree in May 1990. Spence started his career as a [[prosecutor]] and later became a successful defense attorney for the [[insurance industry]]. Years later, Spence said he "saw the light" and became committed to representing people, instead of [[corporation]]s, insurance companies, [[bank]]s, or [[Big Business]].<REF NAME="HARRYWALKER"/> ==Karen Silkwood== Spence first gained national attention and is most well known for the [[Karen Silkwood]] case.<REF NAME="HARRYWALKER">[http://www.harrywalker.com/speakers_template.cfm?Spea_ID=216 Gerry Spence Biography] at speakers' bureau site.</ref> Karen Silkwood was a chemical technician at the [[Kerr-McGee]] [[plutonium]] production plant, where she became an activist and vocal critic of plant safety, what would now be known as a [[whistleblower]]. On [[November 13]] [[1974]], Silkwood died in a fatal one-car crash under suspicious circumstances after reportedly gathering evidence for her [[trade union|union]]. Spence represented Silkwood's father and children, who charged that Kerr-McGee was responsible for exposing Silkwood to dangerous levels of [[radiation]]. Spence won a $10.5 million verdict for the family. In 1984, the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] upheld the family's right to sue under state law for punitive damages from a federally regulated industry.<REF>[http://www.highbeam.com/library/docfree.asp?DOCID=1G1:4422034&ctrlInfo=Round20%3AMode20c%3ADocG%3AResult&ao= Silkwood Case Laid To Rest], August 30, 1986, Science News.</ref> The Silkwood case achieved international fame and was the subject of many books, magazine and newspaper articles, and a major [[Silkwood|motion picture]]. ==High Profile Cases== After ''Silkwood'', Spence tried a number of high profile cases. He has not lost a jury trial since 1969, and has never lost a criminal case, although he has had several of his more prominent civil verdicts overturned on appeal and lost a 1985 [[manslaughter]] case at trial, later prevailing on [[appeal]]. Spence successfully defended [[Randy Weaver]] on [[murder]], [[assault]], [[conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]], and [[gun law|gun]] charges in the [[Ruby Ridge]], [[Idaho]] federal standoff case, by successfully impugning the conduct of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] and its [[Federal Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab|crime lab]]. He also successfully defended [[Ed Cantrell]] in the [[Rock Springs, Wyoming]] murder case, and won the [[acquittal]] of former Filipino [[First Lady]] [[Imelda Marcos]] in [[New York City]] on federal racketeering charges. On June 2, 2008, Spence obtained an acquittal of Detroit lawyer Geoffrey Fieger, who was charged with making unlawful campaign contributions. Before returning a not guilty verdict, the federal court jury deliberated 18 hours over four days. The acquittal kept Spence's record intact of never losing a criminal case. "This is my last case," Spence told jurors. "I will be 80 in January, and it's time for me to quit, to put down the sword." [http://abajournal.com/news/spences_no_loss_record_stands_with_fieger_acquittal/] In civil litigation, Spence won a $52 million verdict against [[McDonald's]] Corporation on behalf of a small, family-owned [[ice cream]] company. A [[medical malpractice]] verdict of over $4 million established a new standard for [[nursing care]] in [[Utah]]. Spence also earned a $33.5 million verdict for emotional and punitive damages for his [[quadriplegia|quadriplegic]] client, after a major insurance company refused to pay on the $50,000 policy. Spence continues to actively practice law, maintaining his longtime law office, now known as the '''[[Spence Law Firm]]''', located in [[Jackson, Wyoming]]. ==Spence & Tort Reform== During the election season of 2004, Spence, a vocal opponent of tort reform, crisscrossed his native Wyoming spearheading a series of self-funded town hall style meeting to inform voters of an upcoming ballot measure, Constitutional Amendment D, which would have limited Wyoming citizens' ability to recover compensation if injured by medical malpractice. The ballot measure failed with a 50.3% "No" vote. ==Books== Gerry Spence is the author of sixteen books, fifteen of which remain in print, including ''[[Gunning for Justice]]'', ''[[Of Murder and Madness]]'', ''[[Trial by Fire (Gerry Spence)|Trial By Fire]]'', ''[[With Justice for None]]'', ''[[From Freedom to Slavery: The Rebirth of Tyranny in America]]'', ''[[How to Argue and Win Every Time]]'', ''[[The Making of a Country Lawyer]]'', ''[[O.J.: The Last Word]]'', ''[[Bloodthirsty Bitches and Pious Pimps of Power]]'', ''The Smoking Gun,'' <REF>''[http://joshmarquis.blogspot.com/2003/09/gerry-spence-vs-truth.html The Smoking Gun]''</ref> and ''Give Me Liberty''.<REF>''[http://www.bookreporter.com/authors/au-spence-gerry.asp Give Me Liberty]'' at BookReporter.</ref> <REF>[http://www.triallawyerscollege.com/gerry/bio.html Gerry Spence Biography] at Trial Lawyers College.</ref> ==Miscellaneous== For many years, Spence has [[lecture]]d at [[law school]]s and conducted [[seminar]]s at various legal organizations around the country. He is the founder and director of the [[non-profit organization|non-profit]] [[Trial Lawyers College]], where lawyers learn to try cases on behalf of the people. In 1986, Spence defended [[Lee Harvey Oswald]] in a 21-day television trial sponsored by [[London Weekend Television]] in the United Kingdom. The trial involved an actual U.S. judge, a jury of U.S. citizens, and actual witnesses to the events leading up to the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The unscripted trial, and the preparation for it, inspired [[Vincent Bugliosi]]'s book ''[[Reclaiming History]]''. Note also that Spence lost this trial to a jury, which convicted Oswald on the count of murder in the first degree. He is also the founder of [[Lawyers and Advocates for Wyoming]], a non-profit, [[public interest]] [[law firm]]. Spence served as legal consultant for [[NBC]] television covering the [[O.J. Simpson]] trial and has appeared on [[the Oprah Winfrey Show]], [[Larry King Live]], and [[Geraldo Rivera|Geraldo]]. He briefly had his own talk show on [[MSNBC]], which he hosted from his home in [[Wyoming]]. Gerry Spence and his second wife, LaNell "Imaging" Spence, share their time between homes near [[Jackson, Wyoming]] and [[Santa Barbara, California]]. ==References== <references/> ==External links== {{wikiquote}} * [http://www.gerryspence.com Gerry Spence's official site] * [http://www.spencelawyers.com/sitemap.html SpenceLawyers.com] * [http://www.gerryspence.com/shared.html Essays] * [http://www.triallawyerscollege.com Trial Lawyers College] * [http://198.170.124.22/public/SunTzu/spence.htm Gerry Spence and Sun Tzu's Art of War] * [http://www.angelfire.com/az/sthurston/Gerry_Spence.html The Jailhouse Lawyer's Tribute to Gerry Spence] * [http://www.quotationcollection.com/author/Gerry_Spence/quotes Gerry Spence Quotes] * [http://www.jacksonholenews.com/article.php?art_id=1205 Spence: $2M settlement underscores loss of freedom] {{DEFAULTSORT:Spence, Gerry}} [[Category:1929 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:American lawyers]] [[Category:American legal writers]] [[Category:American political writers]] [[Category:People from Santa Barbara, California]] [[Category:People from Laramie, Wyoming]] [[Category:University of Wyoming alumni]] [[Category:Wyoming lawyers]]