Milt Harradence
Asa Milton "Milt" Harradence (April 23, 1922 – February 28, 2008)[1][2] was a Canadian criminal lawyer, pilot, politician and judge of the Court of Appeal of Alberta.
Early life
Harradence was born in
Military service & aviation
From 1941 to 1943, during World War II, he served in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).[2] It was during his service that he was wrongfully "cashiered" for performing aerobatics with a Bristol Bolingbroke bomber-trainer, "broken" from the RCAF and sent to Alaska as a member of the Canadian Army. After the war he overturned his "cashiering," had his flying status and honourable record renewed and moved to Calgary, Alberta to practise law.
Harradence flew with
While ferrying surplus Mustangs from the old RCAF Station Macleod, Harradence and Garrison noted a number of Lancaster bombers heading into the melting pot. Garrison purchased Lancaster FM-136 in 1960 and ferried it to Calgary where, with the help of Milt Harradence and Arthur R. Smith DFC, MP, created the Lancaster Memorial Fund. The Lancaster is a permanent display in Calgary as a memorial to those who served with the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, during World War Two. Harradence and Smith received their pilot training under this scheme. Smith flew Lancasters.
Politics
With Lynn Garrison as his campaign manager, Harradence was elected to
Harradence's vigorous campaigning created a base upon which Peter Lougheed would develop the Progressive Conservative Party to the point where it defeated the Social Credit Party. Lougheed became Premier.
Legal career
Harradence retired from politics and returned to his legal practise as a criminal defence lawyer.[4] The target of a number of death threats due to his legal work, he was one of the few people in the country granted a permit to carry a concealed weapon.[2]
In the 1970s, he was asked by the province to investigate allegations of brutality by prison guards at the Calgary Correctional Institute. While he cleared the guards his report criticized the prison system.[2]
The
In spite of this, one of Trudeau's final acts before leaving office, saw Harradence appointed to the Alberta Court of Appeal[3] in 1979 where he sat as a judge until his retirement in 1997.[2] He died from cancer on February 28, 2008.[2]
Other
His service was recognized when he was appointed an honorary colonel of the
His colleague, C.D. Evans, wrote a book on Harradence: Milt Harradence: The Western Flair.[6] Canadian Magazine said of Harradence: "When he strides into a courtroom, Calgary’s Milt Harradence goes to war."[7]
The Criminal Trial Lawyers' Association in Alberta periodically awards the Harradence Prize in his honour to the experienced counsel whose actions most reflect the characteristics of Harradence [8]
References
- ^ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/31892017/asa-milton-harradence
- ^ a b c d e f g Komarnicki, Jamie, Legal eagle Harradence dies at 86 Archived 2012-11-04 at the Wayback Machine, March 2, 2008 Edmonton Journal
- ^ a b Beuerlein, Patricia, "Tory leadership history," Edmonton Journal, December 3, 2006
- ^ "In Defence of Alberta - 2006 Virtual Exhibit".
- ^ "Legal eagle Harradence dies at 86". Archived from the original on 2012-11-04. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
- ^ "Durvile & UpRoute Books | Purveyors of Fine Knowledge".
- ^ "LASA Publications". Archived from the original on 2010-03-15. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ^ "Criminal Trial Lawyers Association". albertactla.com. Archived from the original on 2009-10-28.