Ewald Receives NLADA Award
(St. Louis, Missouri; December 12, 1997) - Louisville Attorney, Robert C. Ewald, a litigation partner with Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs since 1972, received the prestigious Arthur von Briesen Award at the 75th Annual National Legal Aid and Defender (NLADA) Annual Conference in St. Louis, Missouri for his leadership on behalf of Kentucky's poor in need of legal assistance in civil and criminal cases.
The Award honors an attorney not employed by a legal services or defender program who has made substantial volunteer contributions to the legal assistance movement. It commemorates the first president of NLADA.
Ewald's work in the area of legal assistance for the poor began in the early 1970's when he was appointed a member of the Board of the Legal Aide Society of Louisville where he continues to serve today. He was Chair and Treasurer of the Board in 1991 and 1992.
In 1970, there were no public defender services provided in Louisville. He joined with other attorneys and organized the Louisville-Jefferson County Public Defender Corporation.
Ewald authored the first state-wide public defender statute, which became the basis for the establishment of the statewide indigent public defender program, the Department of Public Advocacy. He was the first president of the Louisville-Jefferson County Public Defender Corporation. Throughout his career, he has provided these enormous services to the cause of indigent criminal defense on a completely volunteer basis.
Mr. Ewald was appointed on October 2, 1990 by then Governor Wallace Wilkinson to membership on the statewide Public Advocacy Commission. He has served on that Commission since that time and has been Chair of the Commission since 1993. In his term as Public Advocacy Co-mission member and chair, he has faced a number of challenging issues involving public defender leadership in the state of Kentucky. Each time he has advanced the cause of the independent public defender efforts in Kentucky within the pragmatic realities of the current attitude towards crime.
He stands out as a person who has provided leadership on behalf of Kentucky's poor when they face the accusation of having committed a crime. He stands out as a person who has made a substantial contributions in upgrading the delivery of indigent services throughout the state of Kentucky. He stands out as one who has persevered in leading Kentucky to better legal services for the poor for the last 27 years.
Dan Goyette, Jefferson District Public Defender, presented Ewald with the NLADA Award in St. Louis, saying, "Without his dedicated hard work and leadership, the quality of justice in this Commonwealth would not be what it is today."
Public Advocate Ernie Lewis observed, "Bob Ewald is highly deserving of this recognition. The KBA, the DPA, and the poor of Kentucky are all the better for his commitment to high quality justice for the indigent accused."
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The Public Advocacy Commission
The 12 person Commission consists of a representative from each of the law schools, and members appointed by the Kentucky Supreme Court and the Governor. The Commission assists the Department in insuring its independence through public education about the purposes of the public advocacy system, and has budgetary and certain supervision responsibilities. The Commission Chair is Robert C. Ewald of Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs. Previous Commission chairs have been William R. Jones, Professor of Chase Law School and formerly its Dean; Anthony M. Wilhoit, former Kentucky Court of Appeals Chief Judge; Max Smith, Frankfort criminal defense attorney; and Paula M. Raines, Lexington criminal defense attorney.
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