Global InformationMichael John Kennedy information
Michael Kennedy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Michael John Kennedy March 23, 1937 Spokane, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | January 25, 2016 (aged 78) Manhattan, New York, U.S. |
| Education | University of California, Berkeley (BA) University of California, Hastings (JD) |
| Children | 3, including Scott |
| Archives at | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||
| How to use archival material |
Michael John Kennedy (March 23, 1937 – January 25, 2016) was an American criminal defense attorney, expert in U.S. Constitutional law, and a civil rights advocate who defended cases for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), the National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee (NECLC) and in his private practice. Kennedy, who tried cases in 36 states, was a member of the National Lawyers Guild and the State Bar in California and New York.
A trial lawyer for over 50 years, Kennedy was known as an exceptional legal strategist who was a "steadfast defender of the underdog and the First Amendment."[1] Kennedy, who specialized in civil and criminal litigation and complex negotiations, was a guest teacher of trial advocacy at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin, and the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City.
His clients included Huey P. Newton,[2][3] co-founder of the Black Panther Party; Bernardine Dohrn[4] of the Weather Underground; Cesar Chavez,[1] co-founder of the United Farm Workers; leading advocate for the use of LSD Timothy Leary;[5] members of the Irish Republican Army[6] (IRA); Los Siete de la Raza;[5] and Pablo Guzmán of the Young Lords.[7] While staff at the NECLC Kennedy defended members of the Fort Hood 43[8] and the late Stanley Neptune, a member of the Penobscot Nation and protester at Wounded Knee.[1]
Kennedy obtained clemency for Jean Harris in 1993.[9] He represented former Sicilian Mafia don Gaetano Badalamenti in the Pizza Connection drug-smuggling case, and Ivana Trump in her contentious divorce with Donald Trump.[10]
- ^ a b c Roberts, Sam (January 28, 2016). "Michael J. Kennedy, Lawyer for Underdogs and Pariahs, Dies at 78". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ Hevesi, Dennis (August 23, 1989). "Huey Newton Symbolized the Rising Black Anger of a Generation". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ Gorney, Cynthis (March 25, 1979). "Mistrial Declared in Newton Murder Case". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ Hough, Hugh (December 4, 1980). "Dohrn, Emerging After 10 Years, Is Still Critical of U.S." The Washington Post. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ a b Moran, Nancy (January 27, 2017). "Michael Kennedy, Who Fought for LSD Guru, Mob Boss, Dies at 78". Bloomberg. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ McFadden, Robert D. (November 6, 1982). "5 Are Acquitted in Brooklyn of Plot to Run Guns to I.r.a." The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
- ^ Guzmán, Pablo (February 1, 2016). "When Michael J. Kennedy defended the Mob, he also defended radicals. Like me. But…". Medium. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
- ^ Janet (August 21, 2018). "50 years ago Black GIs at Fort Hood jailed for protesting riot-control duty". iacenter.org. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
- ^ Berger, Joseph (December 28, 2012). "Headmistress, Jilted Lover, Killer, Then a Force for Good in Jail". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
- ^ Brenner, Marie. "After the Gold Rush | Vanity Fair | September 1990". Vanity Fair | The Complete Archive. Retrieved August 13, 2020.