 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 
|
|
 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Bar News - November 8, 2002 NH Lawyers in Uniform Share Their Experiences A Veterans' Day Salute to Bar Members in the Military JUMPING OUT OF airplanes in Kuwait. Flying rescue helicopters for the Coast Guard in Hawaii. Arranging military training exercises without damaging fragile marine environments. Providing legal advice on taxes and debt relief to cash-strapped families of young Marines. These are among the varied responsibilities NH Bar members on active duty in the military are performing in direct or indirect support of the defense of their country. In recognition of Veterans' Day, Bar News this month is spotlighting the 19 Bar members on active duty status in the armed forces. We corresponded via e-mail with several of these officers, who were appreciative of the opportunity to communicate with their colleagues in the Bar about their lives and the kind of work they do. The following is Part 1 of an edited sampling of their responses, with a second installment to be published in the next issue. A complete list of the NHBA members on active duty military status appears on page 10. (Please contact Anna O'Neill, NHBA member records coordinator, at (603) 224-6942 or at aoneill@nhbar.org if you were somehow omitted.) As with most things legal, there is a disclaimer: All of these accounts are the personal opinions of the authors and do not represent the official views of any branch of the armed services.
Guiding 'Copters and Commanding Officers Thank you for your e-mail, and for the Bar's nice letter to those of us on military service (see Oct. 4 issue of Bar News). Prior to being admitted to the Bar in NH in 1996, I was an active duty officer and rescue helicopter pilot in the US Coast Guard. I joined the USCG reserves in 1993 in a coastal warfare unit. In 1999, I was recalled to active duty to fill a critical pilot shortage, and was assigned to the Coast Guard Air Station in Barbers Point, Hawaii (yes, I know, tough duty!). At the time, I was an assistant county attorney in Merrimack County (after being at Devine, Millimet for two-plus years). I was recently reassigned to the Coast Guard Air Station in Traverse City, Michigan. My duties include being the command legal officer. I advise the commanding officer on matters of military law, search and seizure, and aviation law. I also provide legal assistance to people assigned to the base, and have appeared in court on behalf of the judge advocate during admiralty cases. This is all while being able to fly rescue helicopters! My flight duties involve rescue, secu rity patrols and maritime law enforcement. While I enjoy my job, I also miss my colleagues in New Hampshire. I enjoyed working with my fellow attorneys, judges, court personnel, office staff and law enforcement people throughout New Hampshire. I sincerely hope to return to New Hampshire and resume my practice. ***** 'A Soldier With Two Law Degrees' I am serving as a J2 plans officer in the Intelligence Directorate of the Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT). I came to MacDill AFB in Tampa in January 2002 and have traveled to Camp As Sayliyah Qatar for six months of the past year, where I served as plans, operations and collection management officer within the Intelligence Directorate for the Combined Joint Forces Special Operations Component Command (CJFSOCC) in theater. My work there took me to Oman, Kuwait and Jordan, as well. I presently am serving as a liaison officer (LNO) from SOCCENT to CENTCOM HQ and anticipate at some point later this year taking a position as SOCCENT's LNO to the Joint Terrorism Task Force of the FBI. I have been in the US Army Reserve since I was an ROTC scholarship student at Dartmouth College. I received my commission in 1983, while still a student at Dartmouth, and I spent my senior year at Dartmouth as a platoon leader of an armor company in the Vermont National Guard. I continued in the Reserves following an educational delay to attend Stanford Law School and clerk for a federal district judge. I then served some years in the 11th Special Forces Group in Newburgh, NY. I have been on continual parachute jump status since November 1990 and continue to jump both here at Tampa and in the theater (I jumped with the 20th SF Group in Kuwait this past June). As you might tell from all of this, I do not serve as a lawyer for the military. I packed my solo practice up, closed the office and put that part of my life on the shelf when I went on active duty. I have no direct comments to make about the experience in that regard, other than I try to hold myself out and perform as a soldier who happens to have two law degrees, and not as a lawyer who happens to be in uniform. ***** 'Balancing the Need for Military Readiness and Protecting the Environment' I am the environmental counsel for the commander of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. This command is responsible for providing fully trained, combat-ready forces to support the United States and NATO commanders in regions of conflict throughout the world. Having been commissioned into the JAG Corps in 1987, the Navy sent me back to school at the University of Virginia in 1996 for my LL.M. I have been exclusively practicing environmental law since then. As environmental counsel, my role is to assist in identifying and ensuring the Navy complies with all relevant environmental regulations while undertaking our statutory responsibility to ensure the fleet is trained and combat-ready. Obviously, there is a careful balance of ensuring that we train and meet our Title 10 "readiness" responsibilities while also complying with all applicable environmental requirements. These requirements include: planning requirements, such as the National Environmental Policy Act; preservation and protection, such as the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; and pollution control and clean-up, including regulation to protect air and water quality. Working in this area of practice is exciting and rewarding. In addition to the fact that the science and law applicable to many of our activities, especially those at sea, are still developing, it is a rewarding challenge to help ensure the crucial military training is undertaken in a way that protects the environment and resources in which we live, train and operate. I work in a variety of areas, from coordinating with Department of Justice attorneys in federal litigation to outreach with public interest groups and private citizens. We also develop close working relationships with state, federal and local regulators and are constantly responding to local political leadership. No day is boring and no day is slow - often they are overwhelmingly full of work. Our legal and environmental obligations sometimes seem to grow while the military has downsized. But, believing that this is an exciting area of legal practice and, even more, that it is an honor to serve our country, I find this work very rewarding. ***** A Real 'Major Dad' Advises Military Families I was attending a two-week judge advocate (military lawyer) refresher course in Newport, RI on Sept. 11, 2001. After the planes struck NY and DC, many of us submitted our names to the voluntary database to return to active duty. I would not have voluntarily left my home, my practice and my family for an extended period on 10 Sep 01. In late January of this year, I closed out my solo practice and reported to active duty at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, for one year in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. This past summer, I agreed to extend those orders an additional year. I should be back in NH in January 2004. Camp Lejeune is home to an active duty, dependent, retiree and civilian employee population of nearly 150,000 people. There are 54 live-fire ranges, 89 maneuver areas, 33 gun positions, 25 tactical landing zones and a state-of-the-art Military Operations in Urban Terrain training facility. Military forces from around the world come to Camp Lejeune on a regular basis for bilateral and NATO-sponsored exercises. I was initially assigned as the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the Base Tax Center. This assignment is usually given to a judge advocate, as a tax assistance program is part of every Marine Corps Legal Assistance Office. In May, I was also assigned as the OIC of the Consolidated Legal Assistance Office. The Legal Assistance Office provides free and confidential legal advice and assistance concerning civil matters to active duty, retired military personnel and their authorized family members. Its purpose is to help prevent and resolve legal problems, thereby improving morale and reducing disciplinary problems. I am not directly involved in the War on Terrorism, or in "protecting our country," as many of my non-military friends and family believe. It is unlikely that I would be sent overseas during my tour here, and the only time I fire a weapon is during my annual pistol qualification. However, I am working in direct support of those young Marines who are the "war-fighters," and in assisting the families they leave behind when deployed overseas. I believe that this fact makes it easier for my own family to understand why I thought it important enough to accept this assignment, leaving them behind in NH. Unlike those deployed in the direct protection of our country, I get to call my wife and children every night, and I get to see them on most holiday weekends. My wife and children were also able to join me down here for five weeks this past summer. What the Bar Association is doing to commemorate the military members of the Bar and educate our peers on our roles means a great deal to me. I have received a tremendous amount of support, understanding and warm wishes from the Bar Association staff, many of my fellow NH attorneys, judges, clerks, neighbors, friends and family. Frankly, I feel privileged to have the chance to serve in this role, at this time in our history. NH BAR MEMBERS ON ACTIVE DUTY IN THE MILITARY LCDR Steven M. Barney, US Navy NH BAR MEMBERS ON RESERVE STATUS Gina B. Apicelli, Plymouth
|
|
Home | About the Bar | For Members | For the Public | Legal Links | Publications | Online Store New Hampshire Bar Association |
