Metropolitan News-Enterprise

 

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

 

Page 4

 

LACBA Criminal Justice Section to Honor Van de Kamp, Perry May 7

 

By a MetNews Staff Writer

 

The Criminal Justice Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association said yesterday it will honor six people, including former Attorney General John Van de Kamp, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert J. Perry, and the late Ken Lamb at the 2009 Criminal Justice Awards Dinner scheduled for May 7 at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.

Based on his “consistent demonstration of legal excellence in the field of criminal law,” the section’s Executive Committee said it selected Perry as Judge of the Year.

Perry was appointed to the bench in 1992 by then Gov. Pete Wilson after spending seven years in private practice.

A former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Perry served in the Narcotics and Financial Investigations sections between 1973 and 1985.

The jurist graduated from Loyola Law School in 1972 and from Claremont Men’s College—now Claremont-McKenna College—in 1965 with a degree in economics.

Van de Kamp, who is also a former president of the State Bar, was selected by the section to receive a career achievement award.

Van de Kamp is of counsel to the Los Angeles office of the international law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP and served as California’s top lawyer from 1983 to 1991.

Prior to that, he was district attorney of Los Angeles County—first being appointed by the Board of Supervisors to fill out the term of Joseph Busch, who died, then twice gaining election to the post.

He was appointed as the first federal public defender for the Central District of California in 1971, and also served as U.S. attorney for the district in 1965 and 1966.

He has received numerous awards in the profession, including MetNews Person of the Year in 2004.

Other honorees will be Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel A. Saunders and Kevin M. Lally as Prosecutors of the Year and Los Angeles County Deputy Alternate Public Defender Patrick G. Thomason as Defense Attorney of the Year.

In addition the organization said it will posthumously recognize former Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Lamb, who tried over 600 felony jury trials during his 25-year career. He passed away in September after a battle with cancer.

 

Copyright 2009, Metropolitan News Company