Charles R. Garry
Encyclopedia
Charles R. Garry was an American civil rights
attorney who represented a number of high-profile clients in political cases during the 1960s and 1970s, including representing the Peoples Temple
in Jonestown
during the 1978 tragedy that occurred at that location.
, Garry grew up in a farm town in California
's Central Valley. He worked his way through law school at night at a cleaning shop and was a Depression-era socialist who began his legal career defending militant trade unions. Like many in his generation, Garry earned his law degree without attending college, and suffered difficulty with spelling and syntax. An avowed Marxist
lawyer, Garry earned a reputation of fighting for underdogs. He insisted on a full truthful disclosure from those he represented, and had a sign on his desk that read "the only clients of mine who go to San Quentin
are the ones who lie to me."
In 1948, Garry was brought before the House Un-American Activities Committee
(HUAC). Garry declared that he was both a Christian and a Communist and, in response to queries regarding the denial of God by Communists, Garry responded by saying, "Mr. Chairman, what the Communists do for their God is their own business. What I do for my God is my own, and none of yours!" In the 1950s, Garry represented other alleged Communists before the HUAC and refused to answer questions himself stating, "I told them to kiss my ass."
as their chief counsel, and to defend Huey P. Newton
in the 1967 slaying of Oakland
Police Officer John Frey. Newton was convicted on the lesser charge of manslaughter. Subsequently, he defended Black Panther Chairman Bobby Seale
. Garry was famous for flair and courtroom dramatics, and one policeman, under intense questioning, jumped from the witness stand and pulled his gun on Garry.
In 1969, he defended the "Oakland Seven", a group of San Francisco Bay Area
anti-Vietnam War activists who were involved in the planning of the 1967 "Stop the Draft Week."
After the turbulent era of the 1960s came to an end and with the demise of the anti-war and Black Power movements, Garry took on a new set of clients.
, led by Jim Jones
, in a number of suits, including several by and against Timothy Stoen
. Garry's political philosophy meshed at least to some degree with that of the Temple, a communist organization, and many felt that Garry's representation added credibility to the Temple as a political organization. Garry believed that the Temple had managed to establish in Jonestown
what Garry himself referred to as "paradise." Garry believed that the Temple picked up where the Movement of the 1960s left off, and that Jonestown was like "socialized society."
After listening to Temple members discuss the history of the case, Garry initially announced on September 8, 1977, that "[w]e've come to the conclusion that there is a conspiracy by government agencies to destroy Peoples Temple as a viable community organization." After further experience with the Temple, including reviewing the results of several Freedom of Information Act requests, Garry eventually changed his conclusion to the belief that there was little government interest, let alone a conspiracy.
Throughout his representation, Garry argued with members of the Temple. Garry had a tumultuous relationship with another Temple attorney, Mark Lane
, because Garry felt that Lane repeatedly interfered in Garry's areas of representation and made too high profile the Temple's claims of a conspiracy against it.
Garry and Lane accompanied Congressman Leo Ryan
and his delegation on their investigation of Jonestown in November 1978. On November 18, 1978, Garry and Lane escaped potential harm at Jonestown by talking their way past Temple security at a house to which they were sent that was located some distance from Jonestown's pavilion. That day, 918 people died in Jonestown and Georgetown, which comprised the greatest single loss of American civilian life in a non-natural disaster until the incidents of September 11, 2001. In addition, five people were murdered by Temple members at a nearby airstrip, including Congressman Ryan, who became the only Congressman murdered in the line of duty in United States history.
.
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
attorney who represented a number of high-profile clients in political cases during the 1960s and 1970s, including representing the Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple was a religious organization founded in 1955 by Jim Jones that, by the mid-1970s, included over a dozen locations in California including its headquarters in San Francisco...
in Jonestown
Jonestown
Jonestown was the informal name for the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, an intentional community in northwestern Guyana formed by the Peoples Temple led by Jim Jones. It became internationally notorious when, on November 18, 1978, 918 people died in the settlement as well as in a nearby...
during the 1978 tragedy that occurred at that location.
Early life
Born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts to Armenian immigrant parents who had escaped the Armenian GenocideArmenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
, Garry grew up in a farm town in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's Central Valley. He worked his way through law school at night at a cleaning shop and was a Depression-era socialist who began his legal career defending militant trade unions. Like many in his generation, Garry earned his law degree without attending college, and suffered difficulty with spelling and syntax. An avowed Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
lawyer, Garry earned a reputation of fighting for underdogs. He insisted on a full truthful disclosure from those he represented, and had a sign on his desk that read "the only clients of mine who go to San Quentin
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin State Prison is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men in unincorporated San Quentin, Marin County, California, United States. Opened in July 1852, it is the oldest prison in the state. California's only death row for male inmates, the largest...
are the ones who lie to me."
In 1948, Garry was brought before the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
(HUAC). Garry declared that he was both a Christian and a Communist and, in response to queries regarding the denial of God by Communists, Garry responded by saying, "Mr. Chairman, what the Communists do for their God is their own business. What I do for my God is my own, and none of yours!" In the 1950s, Garry represented other alleged Communists before the HUAC and refused to answer questions himself stating, "I told them to kiss my ass."
Black Panthers and Oakland Seven
In 1968, he was retained by the Black Panther PartyBlack Panther Party
The Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
as their chief counsel, and to defend Huey P. Newton
Huey P. Newton
Huey Percy Newton was an American political and urban activist who, along with Bobby Seale, co-founded the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.-Early life:...
in the 1967 slaying of Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
Police Officer John Frey. Newton was convicted on the lesser charge of manslaughter. Subsequently, he defended Black Panther Chairman Bobby Seale
Bobby Seale
Robert George "Bobby" Seale , is an activist. He is known for co-founding the Black Panther Party with Huey Newton.-Early life:...
. Garry was famous for flair and courtroom dramatics, and one policeman, under intense questioning, jumped from the witness stand and pulled his gun on Garry.
In 1969, he defended the "Oakland Seven", a group of San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
anti-Vietnam War activists who were involved in the planning of the 1967 "Stop the Draft Week."
After the turbulent era of the 1960s came to an end and with the demise of the anti-war and Black Power movements, Garry took on a new set of clients.
Peoples Temple
In 1977, amidst media scrutiny and potential litigation, Garry began representing the controversial Peoples TemplePeoples Temple
Peoples Temple was a religious organization founded in 1955 by Jim Jones that, by the mid-1970s, included over a dozen locations in California including its headquarters in San Francisco...
, led by Jim Jones
Jim Jones
James Warren "Jim" Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple, which is best known for the November 18, 1978 mass suicide of 909 Temple members in Jonestown, Guyana along with the killings of five other people at a nearby airstrip.Jones was born in Indiana and started the Temple in...
, in a number of suits, including several by and against Timothy Stoen
Timothy Stoen
Timothy Oliver Stoen , is best known for his central role as a member of the Peoples Temple and later opposition to the group in a multi-year custody battle over John Stoen that led to an investigation of the Peoples Temple's settlement at Jonestown, Guyana...
. Garry's political philosophy meshed at least to some degree with that of the Temple, a communist organization, and many felt that Garry's representation added credibility to the Temple as a political organization. Garry believed that the Temple had managed to establish in Jonestown
Jonestown
Jonestown was the informal name for the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, an intentional community in northwestern Guyana formed by the Peoples Temple led by Jim Jones. It became internationally notorious when, on November 18, 1978, 918 people died in the settlement as well as in a nearby...
what Garry himself referred to as "paradise." Garry believed that the Temple picked up where the Movement of the 1960s left off, and that Jonestown was like "socialized society."
After listening to Temple members discuss the history of the case, Garry initially announced on September 8, 1977, that "[w]e've come to the conclusion that there is a conspiracy by government agencies to destroy Peoples Temple as a viable community organization." After further experience with the Temple, including reviewing the results of several Freedom of Information Act requests, Garry eventually changed his conclusion to the belief that there was little government interest, let alone a conspiracy.
Throughout his representation, Garry argued with members of the Temple. Garry had a tumultuous relationship with another Temple attorney, Mark Lane
Mark Lane (author)
Mark Lane is an American lawyer who has written many books, including Rush to Judgment, one of two major books published in the immediate wake of the John F. Kennedy assassination that questioned the conclusions of the Warren Commission. Another book, Plausible Denial, published in 1991, continued...
, because Garry felt that Lane repeatedly interfered in Garry's areas of representation and made too high profile the Temple's claims of a conspiracy against it.
Garry and Lane accompanied Congressman Leo Ryan
Leo Ryan
Leo Joseph Ryan, Jr. was an American politician of the Democratic Party. He served as a U.S. Representative from California's 11th congressional district from 1973 until he was murdered in Guyana by members of the Peoples Temple shortly before the Jonestown Massacre in 1978.After the Watts Riots...
and his delegation on their investigation of Jonestown in November 1978. On November 18, 1978, Garry and Lane escaped potential harm at Jonestown by talking their way past Temple security at a house to which they were sent that was located some distance from Jonestown's pavilion. That day, 918 people died in Jonestown and Georgetown, which comprised the greatest single loss of American civilian life in a non-natural disaster until the incidents of September 11, 2001. In addition, five people were murdered by Temple members at a nearby airstrip, including Congressman Ryan, who became the only Congressman murdered in the line of duty in United States history.
Later life
Garry continued to practice law after the Jonestown incident, his clientele changed and his chance for further national acclaim had passed. His post-Jonestown press conferences of November/December 1978 served as his final public acts. Garry died of a stroke in August 1991, at the age of 82 in Berkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
.
Additional sources
- The People's Advocate: The Life & Times of Charles R. Garry, a 2007 documentary by filmmaker Hrag YedalianHrag YedalianHrag Yedalian is an Armenian-American documentary film director and producer. He is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and has attended UCLA School of Law and the AFI Conservatory.-Filmography:...
.