07/10/2026
I was “bread and buttered” Shanty Irish on the other side of the tracks in Northampton and schooled by the good Sisters of St. Joseph at St Mike’s, where, as a senior in late April 1970 I pitched opening day for the Saints and lost to Amherst by a score of 31 to 0 or some such score. It wasn’t pretty. But I’m a much better lawyer than I ever was a pitcher. If we meet, you’ll soon find that I’m very fond of people and the “craig”(Irish for banter and pronounced “crack”). But, truth be told, as much as I love people, I love dogs even more. After graduating in three plus years, Phi Beta Kapa from Clark University at the ripe age of 20, I realized my lifelong dream and served as a police officer for the Manchester N.H. P.D. It has always been my dream to protect the weak from harm. What else would you expect from a good Irish Catholic boy? Talk about stereotypical Mick families, when I was married to my Beth by Fr. Cronin at St. Mary’s on December 20, 1975, I was a cop, my brother “Moose”, who was my best man, was in his third year at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary studying for the priesthood and my oldest brother Dan was working on a garbage truck at Smith College. While I have nothing but the utmost respect for the brave men and women who wear the blue, it just wasn’t for me. So, I headed south for U Conn Law School where I was selected for the Law Review and graduated in 1979, 5th in a class of nearly 400. Lest you think I’m gifted, let me tell you, I’m not: there’s nothing special about me, other than my deep caring for people and the work I do.
As a 1979 graduate of U Conn Law, my expectations were modest. I expected the practice of law to mirror my experience in Law School: I expected to excel as a lawyer but not like it much. But I was wrong, so wrong. In the practice of law, I found what I was always looking for, the chance to help people doing what I was cut out to do. And I do it well. For nearly 45 years, I’ve had the honor and privilege of helping people as a lawyer and loved every precious moment of it. Through those years I’ve defended many charged with a OUI, Vehicular Homicide and a myriad of other crimes, represented others badly hurt in accidents, helped young couples buy their first homes and old folks plan their estates. But I like to think of myself as a trial lawyer. Let’s just say I know my way around a courtroom. As General Counsel and Special Assistant Attorney General for the Hampshire Sheriff’s Office for 40 years, I’ve defended our officers in countless civil actions in state and federal courts and haven’t lost yet, not once. In Burrell v. Robert Garvey, which is often cited by federal and state appellate courts in the area of constitutional law dealing with officers’ duty to protect inmates from inmate assaults, I represented our officers before the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals and won. The way I see it, it’s my job to protect people, to take on their troubles so they can breathe easier, comforted by the knowledge that they are in very good hands. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to make a small difference in the lives of many. I believe I have done that and God willing will continue to do so for many years to come. You see, I don’t do what I do for the pay: I do it because I love it.
