E. E. (Bo) Edwards - Remembered Robert W. Ritchie
E.E (Bo) Edwards, who died December 14, 2004, was a wonderful and unforgettable friend, a man of quiet and unyielding courage who left his mark on the laws of our nation.
Bo was born on September 28, 1943, the first son of Elbert Edwin and Liberty Aloyce Edwards, and raised in McKenzie, a small town in west Tennessee. His father, a family physician, was called Dr. Ebb, or sometimes “Ebbo.” The nickname (Bo) stuck to Dr. Ebb’s son all of his life.
After typical small town experiences such as school, Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout), football, basketball, and band, Bo graduated from The McCallie School in Chattanooga, and enrolled in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where, in 1965, he completed his Bachelor of Arts Degree with honors, as a Morehead Scholar. Bo was drawn to the political arena, in which he spent the next three years, working on the Tennessee Governor’s Staff as legislative liaison, as Assistant Director of the Tennessee Democratic Party, and then as a staff assistant for Senator Albert Gore, Sr. in Washington, D.C., before taking the position of coordinator for the presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Robert Kennedy’s death in 1968 hit Bo hard. He temporarily withdrew from the political scene and enrolled in Vanderbilt Law School, from which he graduated in 1971.
After three years as an Assistant D.A. in the Office of the District Attorney of Davidson County, Tennessee, Bo found his calling as a criminal defense lawyer and for the next 30 years devoted himself to the defense of the citizen accused, to fighting for those whom he believed were the victims of abuse from overreaching government power, and to organizations which were dedicated to those causes.
In 1974, the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (TADCL) was just getting started and needed a leader. Bo became that leader and devoted his considerable energy and organizational skill to the development of that organization. He served as the TACDL’s third president in 1976 and helped build the foundation on which the organization has become an active and successful voice for criminal defense.
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) was the organization that Bo Edwards loved and to which he devoted much of his being in the last 15 years of his life. To understand the depth of his devotion and dedication to NACDL it is necessary to know the challenges that he overcame to serve this organization. Bo was fortunate to inherit many fine qualities from his father, Dr. Ebb, but he also inherited polycystic kidney disease, which often lays dormant until the bearer reaches about 40 years of age, then destroys the kidneys. Bo’s disease became active in 1982 and he deteriorated quickly, but his loving sister Meredith donated one of her kidneys and Bo’s health was restored. Bo resumed his active practice, continuing to vigorously defend his clients in state and federal courts.
In 1991, Willie Jones came to Bo for assistance. Jones had been on his way to Texas to purchase shrubbery for his landscaping business, carrying a quantity of cash as he attempted to board a flight from Nashville. The DEA seized his cash at the airport and thus began the case that focused Bo Edwards on the injustice of the forfeiture laws of this country and launched him on a quest to which he, and others, devoted much of the next ten years. Their efforts culminated in the passage by the United States Congress of the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000.
In 1991, Bo initiated the formation of NACDL’s Forfeiture Abuse Task Force, and for the next nine years worked with Rick Troberman, David Smith, and others to attempt to change the law of forfeiture. It was an uphill battle, with the Department of Justice resisting every effort that was made. Bo realized that to be successful, it was necessary to educate the public and he appeared on the CBS news magazine 60 Minutes and on radio talk shows from New York to Los Angeles, explaining the need to reform civil forfeiture laws.
He formed a close relationship with Representative Henry Hyde (R-IL) then Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and testified before that committee and its subcommittees on numerous occasions. The DOJ provided voluminous materials to the committee and Bo, Rick and David spent many hours responding to information which they believed to be misleading. Ultimately, the first modification of forfeiture laws to the benefit of citizens in more than 200 years became law in 2000. Among other modifications, the amended statute changed the burden of proof from the citizen to the government. This statute is Bo’s legacy. Bo had the satisfaction of knowing that he had made a difference.
The kidney that Bo had received from Meredith began to fail four years before his inauguration as NACDL President in 2003. Few of us knew the seriousness of his condition, but Bo knew that he was fighting a losing battle with the disease. He never complained. Former NACDL Board Member Annabelle Hall, who stayed in regular contact with Bo during his illness, said that Bo made a conscious decision to spend what remained of his life in the service of NACDL. He conserved his energy to be spent on each meeting and each project. He was determined to serve in the office to which he had been elected. He did so with the fierce but gentle spirit that had marked his practice and his life. Not only did he serve, he served well. During the year of his presidency, NACDL received a grant from a major foundation to fund the fight against over-criminalization and over-federalization within the criminal justice system. That funding will provide for a permanent staff person for the White Collar Crime Project, placing NACDL in the forefront of this effort. Building on his early state experience with the TACDL, Bo initiated the first jointly sponsored CLE between NACDL and a state organization, partnering with the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association to produce an outstanding seminar in San Antonio. His leadership in promoting a better relationship between the leadership of the organization and the professional staff was appreciated by all.
During his final months, Bo drew great strength and support from his law partner, Jim Simmons, who had steadfastly assisted Bo in his cases when Bo was unable to carry on by himself, from his sister Meredith Lampley and from his brother Robert T. “Little Bo” Edwards, who spoke eloquently at his memorial service on December 16, 2004.
The ultimate legacy that Bo Edwards left to us is his inspiring personal example that we must never give up the fight. As NACDL Board Member Bill Massey of Memphis, TN said, “Even when his hand was too weak to raise the sword, the fight never left his eye.” May we honor his life by continuing the same fight with the same determination that Bo Edwards showed us in his life and in the manner of his death.
