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The magazine of the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Virginia.
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the magazine of the Appalachian School of Law
Winter 2010
the current
To serve
Ready
Law school, military mesh in unique waysfor trio from ASL
Also inside:
tt Judge Glen Williams honored
Natural Resources Center on horizon
Harris awarded major grant for study
2
around campus
photo op uu
Former President George W. Bush spoke to about 75
patrons who gathered at The Olde Farm in Bristol,
Va., for a fundraiser that benefited ASL.
The event, held Sept. 24, also benefited the Appalachian
College of Pharmacy. The Olde Farm, Cumberland Develop-
ment LLC, and Alpha Natural Resources were sponsors.
Longtime ASL supporter and former board member Jim
McGlothlin of the United Companies was one of the
driving forces behind the event.
The evening included a cocktail reception, dinner, a
photo opportunity, and remarks by Bush. The visit came just
ahead of the November release of Decision Points, Bush’s
memoir. His remarks focused on the rationale behind some
of the situations featured in the book, Dean Wes Shinn
said.
Bush was “charming, open, and articulate,” said Wendy
O’Neil, director of development for ASL. “His remarks
were not canned at all.” He shared humorous stories of his
presidency and touching moments regarding the Sept. 11
attack, she said.
Having a headliner of Bush’s stature at a fundraising event for the school “indicates that ASL has achieved recognition
as an institution of higher learning nationally, not just regionally,” Shinn said.
Jason Gallagher ’11, vice president of the Student Bar Association, also attended. The private event was closed to all
media. Bush was presented with an honorary membership to The Olde Farm, a private golf club that opened in 2000. n
Bush speaks at fundraiser for ASL, ACP
the currentis published twice a year by
the Appalachian School of Law. Send
comments, questions, and alumni
updates to [email protected].
Editor, designer: Saundra Latham
Photos: Jason McGlothlin, Saundra Latham, student and alumni submissions
Contributors: Pat Baker, Priscilla Harris, Saundra Latham, Paula Young,
ASL alumni
Cover: Dean Wes Shinn and Jon Marion ‘05 unveil a plaque to be housed at
ASL honoring retired federal judge Glen Williams.
Team “Average Joes” celebrates
its win at this year’s Green Bowl,
held Oct. 9 at Enoch’s Branch field.
Registration fees from the event,
sponsored by the Environmental
Law Society and the Sports and
Entertainment Law Society, are
being donated to the Southern
Environmental Law Center.
Former President George W. Bush and Dean Wes Shinn
Winter 2010 n 3
ASL has purchased the brick home at 1432 Walnut St., just a
short walk from campus, to house the future Appalachian
Natural Resources Law Center and Clinic. The facility
would also house the Appalachian Journal of Law and the Appalachian
Natural Resources Law Journal.
The center would offer the school’s joint certificate in graduate
study in natural resources law, a partnership with Virginia Tech, and
would aim to recruit and hire a specialist to develop a Master of
Laws program in natural resources law.
Representatives of the Natural Resources Law Clinic would
provide legal assistance, advocacy and services to citizens and
organizations from the region. The center also would sustain a
close relationship with the Energy and Mineral Law Foundation.
ASL is one of only 11 law schools on EMLF’s governing board.
“ASL needs to distinguish its program from others,” said Dean
Wes Shinn. “Carving a niche in the natural resources law area is
not only a natural fit with local interests, but is a fit within the
mission served” by ASL.
Renovation plans call for three classrooms, several offices,
student work space, and a caterers’ kitchen, said Wendy O’Neil,
director of development for ASL. Plans would aim to keep as much
of the home’s historical integrity as possible, she said.
The classrooms would be fitted with SMART technology,
including sophisticated computers, networking, software, audience-
response technology, and up-to-date audio-visual capabilities.
ASL hopes to have the 6,000-square-foot facility renovated
and ready for use by the 2012-13 school year.
“The Center will permit us to partner with other institutions in
the region that have academic and research programs in natural
resources, with ASL as the only law school inside the region provid-
ing the currently missing legal analysis component to projects
undertaken by others,” Shinn said. n
Plans for natural resources clinic in works
Fourteen ASL students and alumni attended this
year’s Energy and Mineral Law Foundation confer-
ence, held Oct. 13-15 in Lexington, Ky. The event
draws energy and natural resources professionals
every year, giving members of the ASL community
a chance to network and represent the school.
Pictured, front row, left to right: Leah Norris ‘13,
Rhonda Bruner ‘01, and Joshua Sokolowski ‘11;
Second row: Blair Wood ‘10, Daniel Kostrub ‘05,
Josh deMars ‘13, William Estes ‘11, Christopher
Menerick ‘11, and Katie Madon ‘12; Third row:
Jason Little ‘07, Patrick Baker ‘07, and Troy
Nichols ‘04. Not pictured: Krystal Branham ‘08
and Julia McAfee ‘00.
ASL’s Natural Resources Law Center and Clinic would provide legal assistance to local citizens and organizations.
around campus
ASL held a reception for Judge Glen M. Williams
Nov. 12, honoring both Williams’ long service as a
member of the federal bench and the donation of his
personal collection to the ASL Library. Williams retired earlier
this year.
The judge has “opened his life and given us the privilege
of sharing it with you,” said Charlie Condon, associate dean
for information services and law library director. It is rare for
a school ASL’s size to have the complete collection of a fed-
eral judge, he noted.
Dean Wes Shinn and Jon Marion ’05, one of Williams’
former law clerks, unveiled a plaque to be displayed at ASL
listing all of Williams’ clerks. Nine of them have become
judges themselves, Williams noted, and several have been affil-
iated with ASL in some way.
Williams lauded his “consistently good” law clerks. He
praised Cynthia Kinser, one of his first clerks and an ASL
board member, and wished her well as she begins her term as
Virginia’s new Supreme Court chief justice and the first from
Southwest Virginia. “I couldn’t begin to say what an excellent
job she did,” he said.
“All of us are blessed to have had the opportunity to clerk
for you,” Kinser said. “We owe our success to your teachings.”
The collection includes Williams’ law-school notebooks,
copies of judicial decisions, newspaper articles about his cases,
photos, awards, and notes from family and law clerks. Among
the highlights are an opinion written completely in limericks
and reports chronicling Williams’ involvement in the Pittston
Coal strike. Williams’ family will add to the collection on an
ongoing basis.
The materials are permanently housed in a reserve room at
the library, accessible during normal operating hours. Staff
will periodically rotate items from the collection into a public
display case.
“We take seriously our commitment to preserving his
legacy,” Condon said. “We thank Judge Williams for entrust-
ing us with it.” n
Virginia Supreme Court Justice Cynthia Kinser, a longtime member of ASL’s Board of
Trustees, becomes the court’s new chief justice in early 2011.
Kinser has served on ASL’s board since 2006, and she has frequently spoken at the
school, said Dean Wes Shinn. She delivered the first-ever professionalism pledge to
new students in 2009.
Kinser “continues to provide an important role model for our female students in this
region,” Shinn said. “ASL thanks her for her leadership in our community and for the
profession.”
Leroy Hassell Sr. will complete an eight-year run as chief justice on Jan. 31. When
Kinser takes over, she will become the first woman to lead the court.
Kinser has deep roots in Southwest Virginia. She is a native of Lee County, where
she was elected commonwealth attorney in 1979. She also served as a magistrate
judge for the Western District of Virginia beginning in 1990.
Former Gov. George Allen, a fellow ASL board member, named Kinser to the state
Supreme Court in 1997. Kinser and Allen have both clerked for retired U.S.
District Judge Glen Williams.
Kinser becomes Virginia’s chief justice
Retired federal judge Glen Williams among some of the
memorabilia that he donated to ASL.
ASL honors judge,puts collection on permanent display
4 n the Current
around campus
Aclass of 127 first-years from
across the nation took an oath
of professionalism August 13,
the symbolic kick-off to their studies at
the Appalachian School of Law.
Will T. Scott, deputy chief justice of
the Kentucky Supreme Court, adminis-
tered the oath to the Class of 2013.
Scott, a southeastern Kentucky native,
has long been a friend of ASL, Dean
Wes Shinn noted, previously serving as
a commencement speaker and Moot
Court judge.
Students should embrace their new
role in the community and remember
that their lessons will come outside of
the classroom, too, Scott said.
“You are fortunate enough to be
here among people who are actually
moving mountains to make life better,”
he said. “Grundy is moving up, and
you’re moving with it.”
Scott urged students to apply them-
selves for the next three years. “Sit
down front. Don’t hide in the back … If
you really want this, you will pass. You
are sitting in one of the best law schools
in this region,” he said.
George Shanks, president-elect of
the Virginia State Bar, also spoke.
Shanks, who practices in Luray, has four
decades of experience. He is a member
of the Virginia Bar Association, Virginia
Trial Lawyers Association, American Bar
Association, Association of Trial
Lawyers of America and several other
bars.
“We look forward to including you in
our ranks in three years,” he said, refer-
ring to the 45,000-plus lawyers of the
Virginia State Bar. Membership is manda-
tory for all who practice in the state.
Shanks will serve as president in 2011-12.
Students should heed “the three R’s”
to succeed, he said: Show respect, do re-
search, and remember to relax.
Students pledged to accept the re-
sponsibilities bestowed by the legal pro-
fession, uphold strong ethics and
academic standards, and treat others with
“courtesy, civility, and respect.”
Members of the Class of 2013 hail
from as close as Grundy and as far as
Alaska. n
Members of the Class of 2013 recite the professionalism oath at the conclusion of their first week on campus.
Professionalism oath kicks off school year
Winter 2010 n 5
Scott Shanks
“I promise to adhereto the high ideals of
the legal profession ...and to embrace theprinciples of civilityand professionalismthroughout my legal
education and for theremainder of my professional life.”
- professionalism oath
Winter 2010 n 5
around campus
Nicole Lawson ‘12 at the ASL CARES
pet adoption drive at Food City (1) ...
Students await their turn at the Marsh
Regional Blood Drive in September (2) ...
Students in Priscilla Harris’ torts class
show off costumes based on cases they
studied (Sara Anderson ‘13 won with
her portrayal of an electrocuted pig) (3)
... ASL volunteers man the snack station
at October’s Remote Area Medical Clinic,
held at Riverview in Grundy (4) ... Tara
Bartosiewicz ‘11 visits a coal-fired
power plant in Jersey City, N.J., for her
environmental law class (5).
1
2
3
4 5
around campus
6 n the Current
The Class of 2013 shows off its pink attire in support of
Associate Dean Sandy McGlothlin, who is fighting breast
cancer (6) ... Dean Wes Shinn, a Saints fan, taunts Vikings
fan and Assistant Dean Tommy Sangchompuphen, who
was forced to wear a Saints jersey after Minnesota lost to
New Orleans (7) ... Meghan Scott ‘11, Jessica Nelson ‘11,
Mary McNeil ‘11, and Kelly Johnson ‘11 take a break
from volunteering at the fall meeting of the ABA Section of
Environment, Energy, and Resources in New Orleans (8).
7 8
6
Winter 2010 n 7
around campus
Professor Priscilla Harris has been awarded a grant
through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Public
Health Law Research program to study the intersection of
dental health and law in central Appalachia.
The grant “enhances ASL’s profile and shows that ASL is rec-
ognized as an institution that can make a difference,” Harris said.
It will blend the law, ASL’s community focus, and public health,
she noted.
The study will focus on what legal practices
impact the consumption and purchase of sugar-
sweetened beverages and citric acid drinks that
adversely affect oral health. It will generate
original data from dentists and residents of
central Appalachia concerning oral health,
the consumption and purchase of the
drinks, and the social acceptability of legal
interventions restricting purchases.
“After moving to Appalachia, I noticed
carts full of soda at the grocery stores, and I
started to wonder what the correlation was
between soda consumption and tooth
decay,” Harris said. “I began to do research
and found studies linking dental erosion and
dental cavities with the consumption of cer-
tain beverages.”
Dr. J. Anthony von Fraunhofer, a lead-
ing researcher of enamel erosion due to soft
drinks, has helped Harris with the grant. “At
present we have only anecdotal data that enamel erosion is com-
mon in (Appalachia), but we do not know the seriousness of the
problem or what might be the leading causes,” he said. The sur-
veys compiled as part of this study will help shed light on the
problem, he said.
ASL students will be able to take an independent study course
to learn to conduct interviews and prepare surveys for the study.
They will work with graduate students from East Tennessee State
University’s College of Public Health. “ASL students will share
their knowledge of the law, and the ETSU-CPH students
will share their knowledge of public health,” Harris said.
Edward J. Kelly, general counsel for ETSU and an
adjunct professor of law at ASL, cited the project as an
important collaboration between the schools. “The
synergy created by the combination of law and
health policy will (benefit) not only the two institu-
tions involved, but also the entire Appalachian
region.”
Dean Randy Wycoff and
Professor James Anderson of
ETSU-CPH also have been
helpful, Harris noted.
The study is among 13 new
projects funded by the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation on the
public health impacts of laws and
regulations. The projects focus on
issues such as lead exposure, vacci-
nations and emergency preparedness.
The grants total more than $3.4 million.
The Public Health Law Research program aims
to promote effective regulatory, legal and policy
solutions to improve public health. The program
is part of the foundation’s public health strategy,
aimed at ensuring that all Americans have quality
public health services and policies.
“The results of these studies are helping us build the evidence
that policy-makers can use to understand how laws and regula-
tions affect public health—not just laws aimed at specific public
health issues,” said Michelle Larkin, director of the public health
team at the foundation.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is the nation’s largest
philanthropy organization devoted exclusively to improving the
health and health care of all Americans. n
Virginia mediators honor Young
Harris wins major grant for soda study
The Virginia Mediation Network has presented Professor Paula Young with the Distinguished
Mediator Award. This is the first year VMN has given the award, which recognizes a prominent
member of the state’s mediation community who demonstrates personal and professional
commitment to advancing peaceful conflict resolution.
Potential recipients are evaluated according to several factors, including leadership in
promoting and advancing the field of mediation and innovation in the development of media-
tion programs or creative applications of mediation. Young was also elected to VMN’s Board of
Directors for a two-year period beginning in October 2010.
“VMN attracts as its members some of the most qualified mediators in the state. To be
recognized by this group is an extraordinary honor,” Young said. “Moreover, it reflects posi-
tively on the program we offer our law students in alternative dispute resolution.”
8 n the Current
faculty/staff spotlight
Harris
Tammy Bentley is ASL’s new financial aid officer. She
previously worked as a deputy director in the Ohio Attorney
General’s office for more than 10 years. Bentley grew up in
Grundy and attended Berea College in Berea, Ky. Her daugh-
ter is a student at Hocking College in Ohio.
Crystal Dye has been named new administrative assistant
to the dean. She holds a bachelor’s in psychology from Milli-
gan College in Elizabethton, Tenn., and a master’s in infor-
mation technology from American InterContinental
University.
Adrienne Hurley is ASL’s new student services assistant.
The Grundy native and 2009 Virginia Tech graduate previ-
ously worked as a project manager for Money Savers and
YAY Advertising in Raleigh, N.C.
Sarah Moore is Career Services secretary and events
coordinator. She previously worked as a master control oper-
ator for a TV station, and graduated from Southwest Virginia
Community College with a degree in early childhood devel-
opment. The Oakwood, Va., native is pursuing a degree in
human services and counseling from Lindsey Wilson College.
Dove Powers has joined ASL as a new admissions coun-
selor. The Haysi, Va., native graduated from Virginia Tech in
Blacksburg, Va., where she interned and public relations and
marketing for the University Unions and Student Activities.
Pamela Walsh is the new assistant to the Registrar and
Student Services. She holds a bachelor of arts in interdiscipli-
nary studies from Virginia Intermont College in Bristol, Va.
Walsh is a Grundy native and has two sons, Corey and
Andrew. n
Virginia mediators honor Young
ASL welcomes new staff members
From left: Crystal Dye, Pamela Walsh, Adrienne Hurley, Dove Powers. Not pictured: Tammy Bentley and Sarah Moore.
Winter 2010 n 9
faculty/staff spotlight
ASL has added
another face to its
faculty this year: Anne
Rife, who joins ASL as
an assistant professor
of law teaching Legal
Process I and II. Prior
to joining ASL, Rife
was an attorney with
Penn, Stuart, and
Eskridge in Abingdon, Va., and Bristol, Tenn. She practiced
insurance defense litigation with specialties in workers’
compensation defense and Medicare compliance. She re-
ceived her J.D. from Washington and Lee in Lexington, Va.,
where she served as co-administrator of the John W. Davis
Moot Court Competition.
Rife received her bachelor’s from Vanderbilt University
in Nashville, Tenn. Her scholarship has focused on the
Medicare Secondary Payer Act’s effect on the practice of
workers’ compensation law and comparative studies of
federal civil and international procedure. She has been
published by the Journal of Civil Litigation and is a con-
tributing author to Berman and Saliba's The Nature and
Functions of Law (7th ed., Foundation Press 2009). Rife is
a charter member of the National Alliance of Medicare
Set-Aside Professionals and a member of the Virginia
Association of Defense Attorneys.
Anne Rifejoins faculty
Mario Cicconetti’s post-Iraq to-
do list didn’t include much rest
or relaxation. The retired Army
captain from Painesville, Ohio, had bigger
plans: climbing a mountain and going to
law school.
His mission to climb Alaska’s Mount
McKinley was about more than the physical
challenge of reaching the summit, however.
Cicconetti ’13, now in his first year at ASL,
was climbing for the Wounded Warrior
Project, a nonprofit that aids injured troops.
“It was the closest thing I could do that
mirrors the experience of a soldier who has
been wounded in battle,” he said. “The
mountain was stronger than us; we could
put ourselves at a disadvantage and really
get a sense of how it is to live with such in-
juries.”
Cicconetti grew up near Cleveland and
attended Ohio University, where he ulti-
mately received his degree in 2005. During
college, however, he felt “some blank void
... a call to do something greater.”
He joined the National Guard and even-
tually the Army, where he climbed the ranks.
At Georgia’s Fort Benning, he attended air-
borne,
infantry, re-
connaissance
and ranger schools
from 2005 to 2007.
The training “tests your limits,” he said.
“You get to know yourself mentally and
physically. You get to know how you handle
yourself in stressful situations.”
After leaving Fort Benning, Cicconetti
was stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska.
And in 2008, he was called to serve in Iraq,
where he led an elite combat platoon of
more than 80 men charged with rounding
up terrorists in Baqouba, northeast of
Baghdad. Initially, he conducted operations
from an old warehouse in one of the most
densely populated areas of the city.
“We were arresting terrorists and ulti-
mately trying to prosecute them,” he said.
“We would have to hunt down judges and
bring them to court, too. We were like
bailiffs.”
Two of his men died in one attack, and a
sergeant was nearly burned alive in another.
More than a dozen of his men were injured.
“You can do triage on the spot, but the
fighting doesn’t stop. (My men) would be
taken away, and I wouldn’t really know how
they were doing. Days would pass before I
would get to see them. And none of us
were around to tell them it would be OK.”
After retiring from the Army, Cicconetti
“still wanted to give back and help some-
how.” In his Alaskan backyard, he saw the
perfect opportunity to do so. Cicconetti and
friend Brian Stoltz hatched a plan to climb
McKinley, the nation’s highest peak at
20,320 feet, to raise money and awareness
Soldier.
Student.
For 2 students, alum,serving their countryand learning the lawprove compatible
10 n the Current
for the Wounded Warrior Project.
The nonprofit has representatives at sev-
eral facilities where injured soldiers begin
their recovery, Cicconetti said. The volun-
teers were injured in battle themselves, so
they’re in a better position to comfort
wounded troops. “They can relate,” he said.
“You may have a guy with shrapnel in his
neck talking to an amputee.” Volunteers also
help injured soldiers with educational and
recreational
opportunities
as well as the
transition back
to civilian life.
Cicconetti
and Stoltz pre-
pared to summit
McKinley for
months. They
knew it would be
tricky: Of those
who attempt the
climb each year,
about half finish it.
They started
their climb June 1.
For most, the trip
takes 16 to 17 days.
For Cicconetti and Stoltz, it took 22.
“We were stuck at a camp at 14,000 feet
for 12 days,” Cicconetti said. “We were
stuck between two weather systems, above
us and below us.”
So they waited. And ate. They happily
accepted food from descending climbers:
bagels, peanut butter, pepperoni, salami. “It
was way better than all the dehydrated food
that we brought,” Cicconetti laughed. Still,
even on a diet of 5,000-6,000 calories a day,
he lost 12 to 15 pounds.
The other major snag: The altitude made
Stoltz severely ill. “He would take five steps,
and have to rest 30 seconds,” Cicconetti
said.
Despite those obstacles, the two made it
to the top of McKinley on June 22. “Every-
thing came full circle for me then,” he said.
“I felt really good about what we had done.”
The next challenge was beginning classes
at ASL. Law school had “always been at the
back of my mind,” Cicconetti said. His
father is a municipal judge, and the drive
toward practicing law really ramped up in
Iraq. “It was frustrating.
We would see a guy
blowing up our guys,
and then he would go
free,” he said. “I wanted
to fix it. Seeing that crystallized the desire
for me.”
Even after hunting terrorists and climb-
ing a mountain, Cicconetti said, law school
isn’t easy. But the military prepared him for
it. “It’s foreign material,” he said. “But I can
handle the pressure in a way that others may
find difficult. I can manage my time well,
and there’s no reason to freak out.”
Cicconetti can see himself practicing
some sort of civil litigation or focusing on
natural resources law.
Ultimately, though, he would love to
teach. “I am where I am today because of
all the teachers and mentors who gave me
valuable advice,” he said. “I feel like I can
give that to someone else.”
l l l
Going into his last semester at ASL,
the only classes that stood be-
tween Jarrod Crockett ’06 and
his law degree were Advanced Torts and
Secured Transactions.
But then he got a call from the Maine
National Guard asking him to serve in
Afghanistan. He became a combat advisor
for an infantry company in the Afghan
Army for six months and commanded the
HHC 240th for a year.
The Maine native was able to complete
his classes abroad, taking his exams in a war
zone. “You think law school is bad?” he
joked. “This was so much harder. Having
time to study was terrible, and they sent my
tests to my JAG officer. I took them at a
forward operating base in Afghanistan. The
lights went out, but I had a flashlight, so
they told me to keep going.”
Crockett is the son of a logger and
worked in the family business growing up.
“My dad was a Vietnam vet, and that in-
stilled in me that I would serve my country
at some point. I come from a family that’s
old school. We believe in giving back to
something greater than yourself. And the
Army provided a way to go to college.”
He attended Radford University in
Radford, Va., on an ROTC scholarship,
where he received a degree in political
science in 1999. After that, he became a
lieutenant and was stationed in Fort Wain-
wright, Alaska, until he decided to come to
ASL in 2003.
When he went to Afghanistan in early
2006, ASL friends sent outlines to help him
Before coming to ASL, Mario Cicconetti ’13 led an elite
combat platoon in Iraq and climbed Alaska’s Mount McKinley,
above, to benefit injured soldiers.
student/alumni spotlight
Winter 2010 n 11
study, and professors posted material online
to help him out. “My classmates were really
supportive,” he said. “That’s what I loved
about ASL ... It seems like you’re tucked
away in the mountains, but you’re pretty
tight with everyone by the time you’re done.”
Discipline from the Army spilled over in
law school, he said. “At first, everyone thinks
they are going to read and do everything. I
spent tremendous hours trying to get every-
thing done. But one of the
first things you’re
taught in the
Army is to use the
resources you
have and stop try-
ing to reinvent the
wheel. That kind of
discipline helped
me out a lot.”
Crockett also
became pals with
other veterans at
ASL. “We would go
over to Italian Village
and head upstairs.
Besides drinking an
excessive amount of
beer, we would com-
pare outlines, bond, and just take care of
each other. We had study groups. Some peo-
ple are super competitive in law school, but
in the Army you learn to work with each
other to succeed.”
On graduation day, Crockett had a video
feed so that he could watch the ceremony
from Afghanistan. But the video went out,
and he could only listen by phone. Celebra-
tion was low-key, he said. “A couple soldiers
came to congratulate me, and we had a cou-
ple of O’Douls, since you couldn’t have real
alcohol,” he laughed.
He still had a representative in Grundy,
however: his dad, who stepped up and
received his degree on his behalf.
“Dad still gives me a hard time,” he said.
“He’ll tell me, ‘I’m the one who actually
graduated from law school, just so you
know.’ ”
Crockett stayed in Afghanistan until
August 2007. “I worked with Afghans all the
time, and learned so much about the culture.
Things that you read about the war are often
tainted—it’s not like that on the ground.
Afghans are tena-
cious, and the peo-
ple who actually live
there are not as extreme as they’re painted
to be.”
After returning to the States, Crockett
geared up to take the bar in February 2008.
He was also preparing for a run for office. In
November 2008, Crockett was elected to
represent District 91 in Maine’s House of
Representatives. He was the only Republican
to oust an incumbent Democrat that year.
“My family is not political,” he said. “But
when I was little, a couple of older ladies
would take me to political meetings, and it
piqued my interest.” In college, he interned
for Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine.
Crockett’s experience as a lawyer lent
itself to the state legislature, where he sud-
denly found himself dealing with topics
including adverse possession and civil
perjury law.
He continues to practice with Hanley
and Associates of Maine, where he takes real
estate, state planning, and business associa-
tion cases. “It’s a neat place to work. I helped
write the foreclosure law, and now I’m fight-
ing a couple cases myself.”
He plans to continue serving in public
office, too. His priorities include cutting
through red tape for the state’s small busi-
nesses and implementing an effective evalua-
tion system for Maine teachers. Beyond that,
he’s taking things as they come.
“Some have asked me to run for higher
office, but I don’t know if it’s in the cards. I
do want a family and a real life,” he said.
Whatever he does, he credits ASL for
helping him accomplish it.
“The reality is that the education you get
at ASL is just as good as you’ll get at any
other law school. What you get out of it is
what you put into it.”
l l l
In May, Donna Ridgel ’11 watched
from the bleachers as members of
ASL’s Class of 2010 received their
degrees and kicked off a summer of study-
ing for the bar. She was supposed to be
graduating with them, but the National
Guard member had been called to serve in
Iraq during her 2L year, putting school on
hold.
Commencement speaker and former
Virginia Gov. George Allen told the crowd
about Ridgel, prompting a standing ovation.
Jarrod Crockett ’06 completed coursework for his final
semester at ASL while serving as a commander in
Afghanistan. He is shown at left with his wife, Paige,
during a welcome-home ceremony.
student/alumni spotlight
12 n the Current
“It was very touching. I teared up,” Ridgel said. “I didn’t expect it.
I don’t see serving in Iraq as, ‘I did this for you.’ It was just some-
thing I was supposed to do—just trying to give something back
that’s bigger than myself.”
Ridgel, commander of the Tennessee Air National Guard’s
1/230th Air Cavalry Squadron’s aviation maintenance unit, helped
keep OH-58D Kiowa Warrior attack/reconnaissance helicopters in
top shape from her base in Mosul, Iraq.
She also happens to be the first female Kiowa pilot and com-
mander, as well as the only female Kiowa test pilot. She flew about
350 hours of missions in roughly 10 months.
Ridgel, a New York native, joined the Army reserves in 1991.
From 1994 to 1999, Ridgel was on active duty, stationed in Colorado
and Korea, and was trained as a generator mechanic.
“I chose that because there was a bonus,” she laughed. “No one
wanted to do it. And it turned out that I met my husband in that
class, who had gotten stuck in it after not getting into another class
he wanted.
“Every major milestone in my life was by accident,” she laughed.
In 1999, Ridgel headed to school at Middle Tennessee State,
where she received a political science degree in 2001 and was com-
missioned through ROTC. The same year, she went to flight school
in Alabama, where she graduated in 2003.
In the Army, Ridgel found herself researching a lot of rules and
regulations to build various cases, planting a seed that eventually led
her to law school. “I really found myself enjoying it. When I got to
law school, it was like what I had already been doing.”
After starting at ASL in 2007, Ridgel gravitated toward contracts
and criminal procedure. She has been president of the Criminal Law
Society and sings in the jug band.
Her long history with the military has given her an edge in school,
she said. “You can manage your own time. In the Army, you’re told
what to do 24-7. But you can do law school more on your own
terms. The military teaches you to multitask, how to overcome ob-
stacles. You realize that things change constantly. So I’m not rattled
by the time constraints of law school or the things I can’t control.”
Knowing she could be called up in the near future, Ridgel took an
extra class as a 2L, a couple of summer classes, and is taking a couple
of extras now, too. She’s on track for May 2011 commencement.
Until she deployed in March 2009, many classmates hadn’t even
realized Ridgel was in the military. “I kept it low-key,” she said. “I had
one friend who was so shocked: She was like, ‘You’re a pilot, and
you’re just now telling me?’ It was a little modesty, but it was also that
sometimes people treat you differently.
“I tell my daughters that people should like you for who you are.
I’m a student, you’re a student, and I just want to relate on that level.”
Members of the ASL community sent care packages of food and
holiday decorations. “All my soldiers were so grateful,” she said. “My
office was literally piled with care packages.”
Being a woman in the military is “100 percent what you make of
it,” she said. “You occasionally have to deal with crap, or with men
who have no boundaries. But that’s anywhere.
“At first, some in my unit treated me like a novelty—they would
ask each other, ‘Have you met the woman?’ But then word of mouth
would get out that I’m very strict.”
Ridgel’s unit lost two pilots in February 2010, just before she was
slated to go home. “They were on their way to Kuwait to go home.
It was a very scary time, and it put everything in perspective. So, get-
ting home was just this gift … but it was also bittersweet.”
Knowing that she was simply lucky to be back raised her spirits as
she watched her former classmates graduate. “After everything that
happened, I wasn’t sad that they were up there and I wasn’t.”
The comforts of home have helped make her transition easier.
“I was so excited about the bathroom. We would only have one
on our forward operating base … and it would get pretty nasty. But
everything was so clean when I got home, and I could get up in the
middle of the night and not have to get my weapon to go to the
bathroom. I wanted to just lie there on the bathroom floor.”
Ultimately, Ridgel hopes to get into criminal law—probably pros-
ecution. Perhaps private practice down the road, she said. She’ll also
mark 20 years with the military in 2011.
While she hasn’t ruled out becoming a JAG officer, military life
has taken a toll on her family, she said, and she may prefer keeping
law and the military separate.
“I can only handle so much at once!” she laughed. n
Donna Ridgel ’11 delayed her final year at ASL to serve in
Iraq, where she commanded the Tennessee Air National
Guard’s 1/230th Air Cavalry Squadron’s maintenance unit.
student/alumni spotlight
Winter 2010 n 13
2003
Travis Griffith ’03 successfully repre-
sented a client in a settlement with the
Kanawha (W. Va.) County Sheriff ’s De-
partment. The case stemmed from a
murder-suicide. Griffith practices law
with Olivio & Griffith PLLC in
Charleston.
2004
Jeremy M. Burnside ’04 recently
moved to Portsmouth, Ohio, where he
has opened the Law Office of Jeremy M.
Burnside LLC. He works primarily on
personal injury and wrongful death cases,
but recently expanded into criminal law.
This summer, he tried a child-rape case
and sat first chair in a high-profile dou-
ble murder trial. He has been admitted to
the Kentucky bar and serves on the
board of the Ohio Association for Jus-
tice. Jeremy will head to Grundy in
March for the ASL Memorial 5k with
Justin Marlowe ’04.
Scott Smith ’04 and wife Stephanie
Smith welcomed a son, Mason Wesly, on
Oct. 12. They live in Henderson, Ky.
2005
John D. Fields ’05 is marrying
Audrey Wong of Malaysia on Jan. 2,
2011, in Orlando, Fla. Fields lives in Cel-
ebration, Fla., and has his own practice,
John Daniel Fields Attorney at Law, PA,
in Kissimmee. He practices mediation,
family law, and civil law. Photo 4.
Joe Kincade ’05 joined Asbury &
Gilbert in Wise, Va., as a partner in No-
vember 2009. Kincade and his partner,
Greg Gilbert, successfully defended their
client in an August 2010 murder trial in
Dickenson County Circuit Court.
Russell L. Rabb III ’05 and Elizabeth
Sadler Rabb ’06 welcomed a baby girl,
Lucy Murphy Rabb, in January 2010.
Lucy joins big brother Russell Lenwood
Rabb IV, born in November 2007. The
Rabbs live in Culpeper, Va., and Russ
works as an assistant commonwealth’s
attorney in Fauquier County. Liz has
become a realtor. Photo 3.
Robert S. Rushing ’05 has been made
partner with Carver, Darden, Koretzky,
Tessier, Finn, Blossman & Areaux LLC
in Pensacola, Fla. He practices commer-
cial litigation, banking, bankruptcy and
creditor’s rights, real estate, corporate and
business law.
2006
D.J. Berry ’06 received an LLM in
taxation from the University of Alabama
in August. He lives in Chattanooga,
Tenn.
2008
Ashley Elizabeth Argo ’08 married
Matthew Herman Dunkin ’08 in Fort
Mill, S.C., on May 29. The couple live in
Lawrenceburg, Tenn. Ashley practices at
Harwell, Plant and Williams, and Matthew
at the Dunkin Law office. Photo 5, back
row, left to right: Alexander Ayers ’08,
Lindsey Brubaker Robinson ’08, Re-
becca Shanks York ’08, John York ’08,
Justin Lovely ’09, Matthew Dunkin ’08,
Thomas Amburgey ’07, Bobby Holli-
field ’08, Brandy Roatsey ’08. Front row,
left to right: Kristie McAuley Beck ’08,
Amy Lawrence Lovely, ’08, Ashley Argo
Dunkin ’08, Janet Haney Amburgey ’08,
Lindsey Flaherty ’08, Marta Farmer ’08.
class notes
14 n the Current
2
4
1
3
5
Matthew Coleman ’08 and Sarah
McKinney ’08 were married on August
19 in Destin, Fla. They live in Cleveland,
Tenn. Matthew is an associate at Logan-
Thompson, P.C., and Sarah owns Cole-
man Law Office PLLC. Photo 1.
Amy Lawrence Lovely ’08 and Justin
Lovely ’09 welcomed a son on Nov. 1.
Jackson Cash weighed 7 pounds, 14
ounces. The family lives in Myrtle Beach,
S.C., where Amy and Justin practice at the
Lovely Law Firm. Photo 7.
2009
Robert Black ’09 and Andrea Ketron
’09 were married Sept. 4 in Kingsport,
Tenn. Robert practices with Ross &
Associates in Tennessee and Virginia. An-
drea is an assistant district attorney
in Kingsport, where they reside. Photo 2.
2010
Christopher Seaton ’10 is general coun-
sel for American Parkour Company, Inc.,
the largest community of parkour and
free-running practitioners in the world.
Seaton has also started Quest Conflict
Resolution in Greeneville, Tenn., where
he handles both legal and mediation
issues.
Charles Sidoti ’10 and Anna Midence
’10 were married Oct. 30 at St. Alban’s
Episcopal Church in Auburndale, Fla.
They will be living in Norton, Va.
Faculty/Staff
April Epley Bell, business office clerk,
and husband Brett Bell ’11 welcomed a
baby girl on June 15. Reese Elizabeth was
8 pounds, 4 ounces. Photo 8.
Admissions Counselor Jason McGloth-
lin married Melissa Nuckles at Grundy
Baptist Church on Oct. 9. The pair
honeymooned in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Photo 6.
Brian Ratliff, director of information
services, completed his master’s in
information technology in September
with a 3.9 GPA. The degree was
conferred by Capella University.
In memoriam
James “Jay” Rutledge Henderson
IV of Richlands, Va., died Oct. 9.
Henderson was an adjunct professor
at ASL from 2003 to 2005 and a visiting
professor of law in 2005 and 2006. He
taught Real Estate Transactions, Law
Office Practice and Natural Resources.
Henderson had practiced law in Tazewell
County for several years. A memorial
service was held in Richlands on
Oct. 12.
ASL Alumni Association
2010-2011 Leadership
President/Chair: Tracy McGuire Frick ’03
Vice President/Vice Chair: Suzanne Kerney Quillen ’04
Immediate Past President: Todd Ross ’02
Treasurer: Karen Jordan ’07
To be appointed: Secretary, Parliamentarian
Board members
Jennifer Barton ‘10, Eric Burnette
‘05, Brittany Fortier ‘06, Allyson
Hilliard ’03, Jason Little ‘07,
Stephanie Little ‘06, Career Serv-
ices Director Denise McGeorge,
Vince Riggs ‘06, J. Chris Rose ‘09,
Robert Rushing ‘05, Meghan Scott
‘11, Dean Wes Shinn, Jennifer
Sturgill ‘05
Chapter Leaders
Chris Fortier ‘05, Washington, D.C.area, [email protected]
Josh Collins ‘05, Charleston, [email protected]
Rebecca Rosser ‘05, Columbia, [email protected]
Heather Gearheart ‘05, Eastern and Central [email protected]
Alan McGraw ‘03, Southwest Virginia, [email protected]
Dustin Sullivan ‘06, Wilmington,N.C., [email protected]
Paul Dull ‘00, Roanoke and Lynchburg, Va., [email protected]
Stephanie Little ‘06, Myrtle Beach,S.C., [email protected]
Matt Bolton ‘06, Tri-Cities, [email protected]
Winter 2010 n 15
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7
6
the currentthe Appalachian School of Law
P.O. Box 2825Grundy, VA 24614
www.asl.edu
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAIDNORTH TAZEWELL, VA 24630
PERMIT NO. 20
Lending a paw uu Members of ASL CARES mingle with potential pet
owners at Food City in Grundy. The September adoption drive was a combined
effort of the Buchanan County Animal Shelter, Buchanan County Humane
Society and ASL CARES. About 14 animals found homes that day.