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Ancer L. Haggerty: an Oral History

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Ancer L. Haggerty: an Oral History Ancer L. Haggerty: An Oral History i ii Ancer L. Haggerty An Oral History FOREWORD BY JUDGE OWEN PANNER US District Court of Oregon Historical Society Oral History Project Portland, Oregon iii Copyright © 2014 United States District Court of Oregon Historical Society Printed in the United States of America PROJECT STAFF Janice Dilg, Editor & Production Manager Clark Hansen & Michael O’Rourke, Interviewers Laura L. Ross & Johanna Ogden, Transcribers Emily Stuckman, Auditor Adair Law, Copy editor iv CONTENTS Foreword............................................................................................................................................vi Introduction....................................................................................................................................viii Tape One, December 9, 2005...........................................................................................................1 Side One—Family history; Vanport; Early education; High school football Side Two—Team sports at UO; Life in 1950s-60s; Joining the Marine Corps; Infantry Officer training Tape Two, December 9, 2005.........................................................................................................16 Side One—Wounded in Vietnam; Wartime politics; UC Hastings School of Law Tape Two, January 13, 2006...........................................................................................................24 Side Two—Metropolitan Public Defender’s Office; Local bench and bar; Marriage and children; Going on the bench; Metzger case; Election to the circuit court; Appointment to the federal bench Tape Three, February 23, 2006.......................................................................................................31 Side One—Role as chief judge; Court personnel & processes; Major cases; Ninth Circuit Court reversals Side Two—Being chief judge; Current court issues; Being a visiting judge; Assessing the Supreme Court; Appellate versus trial court judge; Courts & public opinion; Evolving legal views Tape Four, February 23, 2006.........................................................................................................53 Side One—Jury decisions; Judicial activism; Plea-bargaining & sentencing; Selection of judges; National political issues & the courts; Selection of judges, cont.; work of a district judge; Retirement & senior status; A career retrospective Side Two—Blank Recording One, March 30, 2011 (supplemental video-recorded oral history).....................63 Early legal career; Memorable cases; Public defender’s office colleagues; Public defender’s office clients; Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt Recording Two, March 30, 2011....................................................................................................77 Private practice cases; Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt colleagues; Professional associations & activities; Trying federal cases; Appointment to the state bench Recording Three, April 6, 2011......................................................................................................86 Going on the circuit court bench; Filing affidavits of prejudice; Election of judges; Federal district court nomination; Initial cases in federal court; Drug cases; District court colleagues; Marijuana laws; Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse Recording Four, April 6, 2011.....................................................................................................105 Types of federal cases; Case research; Future of federal judiciary; Making decisions in cases; Final thoughts on career Appendix, Biography & resume................................................................................................115 Photograph Gallery (Photos courtesy of Ancer Haggerty)..........................................................117 Endnotes.........................................................................................................................................122 v FOREWORD The Oral History Project of the District Court of Oregon Historical Society began in 1983. Through the efforts of Judge James Burns and his wife Helen, a gathering of lawyers, judges, and historians took place at the Society’s inception. The Honorable Robert F. Peckham, District Judge for the Northern District of California, discussed the Northern District Historical Society and the inspiration was born for Oregon’s District Court Historical Society, the second such organization in the country. The original Board of Directors of the Society was composed of twenty-one members with bylaws including the Presiding Judge of the Court, the Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court, and the President and a representative of the Oregon State Bar. The original officers and directors included outstanding judges and lawyers – Judge John Kilkenny, Honorary Chair, Judge James Burns, Chairman, Randall Kester, President, Manley Strayer, Vice President, Elizabeth Buehler, Treasurer, Susan Graber, Corporate Secretary, and Robert M. Christ, Executive Secretary, along with many other top names in Oregon’s legal history. The Society decided to collect, study, preserve, analyze, and disseminate information concerning the history, development, character, operations, and accomplishments of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. It was therefore logical that the Oral History Project should be established to preserve the histories of the judges, law firms, and lawyers who actively practice in the Court. With the assistance of Rick Harmon and James Strassmaier, the Oregon Historical Society held seminars to educate volunteers in taking oral histories with a biographical and Court-oriented focus. The Oregon Historical Society has been most vi cooperative in agreeing to maintain these histories in their permanent collection for study by scholars and other interested parties. These oral history interviews have been taken by recording devices, and are either transcribed or transcription is underway. A transcript reproduces, as faithfully as possible, the original sound recording that reflects the special value of oral history, namely its free and personal expressiveness. Most of the transcripts in the District Court Collection have been lightly edited and reviewed for clarity and accuracy by the narrators. That process continues. It is through these wonderful oral histories that the story of the Court is told. We now have recorded nearly 120 individuals since the project began. The goal is to record the individual histories of all the judges of the Court, as well as those of participating lawyers. The Court has a rich tradition reflected in the activities of the judges and lawyers of the Court. The recording has been done not only by professional historians, but also by dedicated volunteers. As one such volunteer said, “The opportunity to interview someone that you always admired is truly an exciting experience.” The history of the Court is being created by the men and women who have participated in its collection and activities. The Society’s goals are to collect as much of that history as possible, because is it the history of the law and those who make it that constitutes the moral development of humanity. All of us who are students of the law venerate it. We are also interested in the people who make it. Judge Owen Panner February 28, 2006 vii INTRODUCTION Judge Ancer L. Haggerty currently serves as a senior judge on the U.S. District Court of Oregon. Prior to his appointment to the federal bench, Haggerty worked as a public de- fender, in private practice, and as a state district and circuit court judge. Judge Haggerty recorded two oral histories, one with Clark Hansen in 2005-2006, and a supplemental video- recorded oral history with Michael O’Rourke in 2011. Ancer Lee Haggerty was born August 26, 1944 in the city of Vanport, Oregon. Vanport, a wartime housing development, was then Oregon’s second largest city, with only Portland having a larger population. His father Roy Haggerty worked as a steamfitter, and his mother Anne P. Haggerty worked as a nurse’s aide and later in the chemistry laboratory at what is now the Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU). They came to Oregon from Texas dur- ing World War II for wartime jobs. Ancer has one older sister, Mary Jo Henderson. Ancer’s father died of tuberculosis in 1947, and his mother remarried to Haywood Fulce. The family lived in Northeast Portland, where Haggerty attended Woodlawn Elemen- tary School and Jefferson High School. At Jefferson, Ancer excelled in football. His parent’s expectations that he and his sister would continue their education through college, combined with his football abilities, landed him at the University of Oregon. There he was successful on both the wrestling team and the Ducks football squad. Thoughts of playing professional football were part of his future plans, but his college years coincided with the Vietnam War, and the war changed those plans. Prior to graduating from the University of Oregon, Haggerty enrolled in the Marine Corp’s Infantry Officer Training program. Upon graduation from the program, Haggerty received his commission as a first lieutenant along with his orders to go to Vietnam. His deployment was brief. After two weeks in Vietnam, Ancer Haggerty was severely wounded by shrapnel on September 11, 1968 while on patrol. He soon returned stateside for multiple surgeries and rehabilitation. His wounds restricted his ability to bend his arm, ending any further thoughts of a career in football. He
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