Larry EchoHawk
Encyclopedia
Larry EchoHawk is an attorney
and legal scholar. On May 20, 2009, EchoHawk joined the administration of U.S. President
Barack Obama
as the head of the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs
. He served as Attorney General
of Idaho
from 1991 to 1995.
, New Mexico
. He attended Brigham Young University
on a football
scholarship (playing as a safety), then received his Juris Doctor
degree in 1973 from the University of Utah
and entered law practice in Salt Lake City, Utah
. In 1977 he became general legal counsel for the Fort Hall, Idaho
-based Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
A Democrat
, EchoHawk entered politics in 1982 by winning a seat in the Idaho State House of Representatives from Bannock County
. Four years later he was elected Bannock County prosecuting attorney. In 1990 EchoHawk was elected Attorney General of Idaho.
EchoHawk served as national co-chair in 1992 for Native Americans for Clinton
-Gore
and was a principal speaker at that year's Democratic National Convention
.
In 1994 EchoHawk announced his candidacy to succeed fellow Democrat Cecil D. Andrus
, who was retiring as Governor of Idaho. EchoHawk decisively defeated former state senator Ron Beitelspacher
and an unknown candidate in the Democratic primary, fueling speculation that he could be the nation's first Native American governor. However, he was defeated in the general election by the Republican
candidate, former Lieutenant Governor
Phil Batt
. EchoHawk has not been a candidate for public office since.
Shortly after his 1994 defeat, EchoHawk accepted a faculty position at Brigham Young University
's J. Reuben Clark Law School
. In that capacity he taught courses in criminal law, criminal procedure and federal Indian law. He has also published several scholarly papers.
EchoHawk is admitted to the bar in Idaho
, Utah
and California
. He is a member of the Pawnee tribe and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
EchoHawk joined the LDS Church at age 14 in Farmington, New Mexico
. He has served as a stake president, bishop, and as member of a high council. At the time he was elected State Attorney General in Idaho he was serving as a member of the board of trustees of LDS Social Services.
Larry EchoHawk and his wife, Terry, currently live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have 6 children and several grandchildren. John EchoHawk
, director of the Native American Rights Fund, is his brother.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and legal scholar. On May 20, 2009, EchoHawk joined the administration of U.S. President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
as the head of the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
. He served as Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
of Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
from 1991 to 1995.
Biography
EchoHawk was raised in FarmingtonFarmington, New Mexico
Farmington is a city in San Juan County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 U.S. Census the city had a total population of 45,877 people. Farmington makes up one of the four Metropolitan Statistical Areas in New Mexico. The U.S...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. He attended Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
on a football
Brigham Young University Cougars football
The Brigham Young Cougars football team is a college football program representing Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. The Cougars won the national championship in 1984 and have a Heisman Trophy winner in Ty Detmer. Since 1965, BYU has claimed 23 conference championships and played in 29 bowl...
scholarship (playing as a safety), then received his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
degree in 1973 from the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
and entered law practice in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
. In 1977 he became general legal counsel for the Fort Hall, Idaho
Fort Hall, Idaho
Fort Hall is a census-designated place in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho, split between northern Bannock County and southern Bingham County. It is located on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation along the Snake River north of Pocatello, near the site of the original Fort Hall in the...
-based Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
A Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, EchoHawk entered politics in 1982 by winning a seat in the Idaho State House of Representatives from Bannock County
Bannock County, Idaho
Bannock County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It was established in 1893 and named after the local Bannock tribe. It is part of the Pocatello, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Bannock and Power counties. As of the 2000 Census...
. Four years later he was elected Bannock County prosecuting attorney. In 1990 EchoHawk was elected Attorney General of Idaho.
EchoHawk served as national co-chair in 1992 for Native Americans for Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
-Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
and was a principal speaker at that year's Democratic National Convention
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...
.
In 1994 EchoHawk announced his candidacy to succeed fellow Democrat Cecil D. Andrus
Cecil D. Andrus
Cecil Dale Andrus was an American politician who served as Governor of Idaho from 1971 to 1977, and again from 1987 to 1995; and in Washington as United States Secretary of the Interior from 1977 to 1981, during the Carter administration...
, who was retiring as Governor of Idaho. EchoHawk decisively defeated former state senator Ron Beitelspacher
Ron Beitelspacher
Ron Beitelspacher is a former Democratic Idaho state senator. He finished second behind Larry EchoHawk in the 1994 Democratic primary for Governor of Idaho....
and an unknown candidate in the Democratic primary, fueling speculation that he could be the nation's first Native American governor. However, he was defeated in the general election by the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
candidate, former Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of Idaho
Lieutenant Governor of Idaho is a constitutional statewide elected office in the State of Idaho. According to the Idaho Constitution, the lieutenant governor is elected to a four-year term....
Phil Batt
Phil Batt
Philip Eugene Batt was the 29th Governor of Idaho from 1995 to 1999.Batt was an onion and hops farmer from Wilder...
. EchoHawk has not been a candidate for public office since.
Shortly after his 1994 defeat, EchoHawk accepted a faculty position at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
's J. Reuben Clark Law School
J. Reuben Clark Law School
The J. Reuben Clark Law School is a professional graduate school located in Provo, Utah at Brigham Young University. Founded in 1973, the school is named after J. Reuben Clark, Jr.—former U.S. Ambassador, Undersecretary of State, and LDS Church General Authority—and its charter dean was former...
. In that capacity he taught courses in criminal law, criminal procedure and federal Indian law. He has also published several scholarly papers.
EchoHawk is admitted to the bar in Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
and 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...
. He is a member of the Pawnee tribe and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
EchoHawk joined the LDS Church at age 14 in Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington is a city in San Juan County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 U.S. Census the city had a total population of 45,877 people. Farmington makes up one of the four Metropolitan Statistical Areas in New Mexico. The U.S...
. He has served as a stake president, bishop, and as member of a high council. At the time he was elected State Attorney General in Idaho he was serving as a member of the board of trustees of LDS Social Services.
Larry EchoHawk and his wife, Terry, currently live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have 6 children and several grandchildren. John EchoHawk
John EchoHawk
John E. EchoHawk is a Native American attorney, and a leading member of the Native American self-determination movement.A member of the Pawnee tribe, EchoHawk is a founder and leader of the Native American Rights Fund . He is a lawyer who has dedicated his life to protecting Indian land and...
, director of the Native American Rights Fund, is his brother.