Watergate lawyer, gay activist Garrison dies at 65

Source: Associated Press (via Gay.com)

Watergate lawyer, gay activist Garrison dies at 65
published Friday, June 1, 2007

Samuel Alexander Garrison III, who defended President Richard Nixon in impeachment hearings in 1974 and later became a gay activist, has died. He was 65. Garrison died Sunday after a long battle with leukemia, said Mark Harris, his partner of 17 years.

Garrison was the deputy minority counsel for the House Judiciary Committee and later also was the chief Republican counsel.

"Sam realized what a high honor it was," Harris said. "He really enjoyed doing that. He said it was fun hearing his name on TV and seeing his name in magazines."

Following Watergate, Garrison returned to Roanoke to practice law. He was disbarred and served four months in prison for embezzling $46,000 from a bankruptcy account in 1980. The Virginia Supreme Court reinstated his law license in 1993.

In recent years he was active in the gay, lesbian and transgender movement. Representing 10 men arrested for soliciting oral sex in two city parks in 1998, Garrison waged an unsuccessful effort to have Virginia's sodomy statute declared unconstitutional.

Read more: http://www.gay.com/news/article.html?2007/06/01/2

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And when he reached St. Peter at The Pearly Gates, they found 18 minutes of his life missing.

although I never can understand how someone active in the gay, lesbian and transgender movement ( a noble cause ) can be a Republican. There's a disconnect there for me.

http://www.cafepress.com/scarebaby/3076161

Roy Cohn, J. "Jenny" Edgar Hoover, Jon Hinson, Terry Dolan. Among many others other posters can remind us of.

He was a friend of my parents. Maybe an acquaintance is more accurate, it's not like he came over for dinner but they were members of the same clubs. I met Sam once or twice at the Elks Club when I was a kid.

From his obit.

He served as Chair, Progressive Democratic Coalition in Roanoke 1993-1995 and Vice Chair of the Roanoke City Democratic Committee, 1993 and 2003-present. Sam was a member of the Sixth District Democratic Committee; State Central Committee; and member of the State Resolutions Committee, Democratic Party of Virginia. He was a member of the Special Events Committee, City of Roanoke, 1992-1995. Sam was recipient of the Lambda Service Award, Alliance of Lesbian and Gay Organizations of Western Virginia, 1992, and recipient of the Community Service Award, Human Rights Campaign, 1994. He was a member of the Executive Board, Virginia Partisans Gay & Lesbians Democratic Club, 2002-present, and a member of the United States Attorney's Hate Crimes Task Force, Western District of Virginia, 2001-2003. Sam served as a Board Member, Virginia Council of Human Rights, 2003-2004, appointed by Governor of Virginia Mark Warner. The Virginia Partisans recently established the Sam Garrison Voter Outreach Scholarship Award. Sam was a passionate civil rights advocate and opened many doors for minorities in our community

Mr. Garrison was a fine man and a personal friend. He will be sorely missed by me and many who work for minority causes.