Education
- B.S. in international affairs, United States Air Force Academy
- M.Ed. in counseling, Northern Montana College
- M.A. in international relations, Salve Regina University
- J.D., Golden Gate University School of Law
- Ph.D. in education, Northcentral University
Personal Statement
I was raised in south Boston, but left there in 1976 to join the Air Force and see the world. After graduating from the Air Force Academy, I served as an intercontinental ballistic missile launch officer during the height of the Cold War, then taught political science and military law at St. Michael’s College as an Air Force ROTC instructor. I then elected to go into the reserves as an intelligence officer while attending law school in San Francisco. I became a deputy district attorney in San Bernardino, California, after law school, handling preliminary hearings and trials in the largest county in the U.S. My cases involved DUIs, weapons charges, aggravated assault, burglary, receipt of stolen goods and drug offenses. I prosecuted 12 fully litigated felony and misdemeanor trials before being recalled to active duty as a judge advocate (JAG) and went to Ramstein Air Base in Germany. Over the next 14 years as a JAG, I served as a prosecutor as well as a defense attorney, ultimately litigating 35 trials for offenses up to premeditated murder.
I retired from the Air Force in 2004 and initially settled in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I served as commander of VFW Post 7829 for four years, the Colorado VFW state judge advocate and the national VFW judge advocate general (2016-2017). I enjoyed trail running near our home in southern Colorado, but my wife and I decided to explore the world, so I took a teaching post in Malta, then we lived in Ireland near Cork (where my mother's ancestors came from) and then northern Portugal. Portugal has some great trail races and, rather than a medal, they tend to give you a bottle of wine, cheese and espresso. After these few years overseas, we have moved to Vermont.
I have taught law, terrorism and political science classes for 30 years now, both online and in traditional face-to-face classroom settings.
Professional Experience
During my Air Force career, I was stationed in Germany, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as in Utah, Colorado, Mississippi, California, Montana, Texas and Vermont. During these tours, I was frequently tasked with representing the Air Force in dealing with foreign governments and ran legal offices as the senior attorney (staff judge advocate) with a staff of attorneys and paralegals who had to navigate many economic issues for the base, basically a small American town planted in the middle of a foreign country. I have also had the benefit of working with many foreign military organizations who exemplified very different perspectives on things like economics, food choices and criminal justice.
I had the privilege of teaching at the American University of Malta as an assistant professor of business law and management with students from Morocco, Greece, Italy, Egypt, Malta, Turkey and many other Mediterranean, African and Middle East countries.
My many years living overseas and working with people from many countries and cultures has made me feel connected and respectful of other nations as they navigate the same safety, security, economic and political waters we do.