may also affect the safety of personnel and national
security. So being on the prosecution side has
given me insight into the second- and third-order
effects of a case.”
Loyola laid the
groundwork
Many military alums say Loyola gave them a
solid grounding for their current work, not just in
the classroom and clinical advocacy education they
received, but also in Loyola’s emphasis on serving
others—a mission that’s consonant with their goals
while wearing the uniform.
“Because I hadn’t spent much time litigating
as an associate at a firm, I didn’t have a complete
appreciation for the quality of the advocacy
instruction I’d received at Loyola until I got into
the Army,” says Kantwill. “Becoming a judge
advocate opened my eyes to how well I’d been
trained at Loyola.”
Cherry adds, “In everything from preparing a
case to making an opening statement to making
closing arguments, Loyola prepared me.”
“I loved that Loyola emphasizes giving back,”
says Williams, who is married to US Air Force
Chaplain Christian Williams. “It doesn’t say, ‘Give
back to the people who never made a mistake.’ It
says, ‘Give back.’ Sometimes I’m challenged morally
when defending cases, especially serious crimes. But
everyone deserves competent counsel and needs to
know they can bounce back, too, with rehabilitation.
FORCES FOR JUSTICE
(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10)
“Many of my clients are very young, enlisted
straight out of high school, and are making
mistakes as they go. Being able to serve as a
mentor and role model to my clients is an
opportunity I might not have had as much of
in the private sector.”
High-profile work
With so much of the US military’s activities in
the public eye, Loyola judge advocates often find
their work in the national and international news.
As a prosecutor at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas,
Williams helped prosecute the case of Captain
Michael Fontana, a nurse accused of intentionally
giving elderly, terminally ill patients lethal doses of
medication. (He was acquitted, andWilliams
says she believes “ultimately justice was done.”)
In 2006-07, Pottinger was in Mosul, Iraq, as
part of highly publicized efforts to train Iraqi
forces in the rule of law. “That was something
they can’t prepare you for in law school; you just
have to do it,” Pottinger recalls. “It was about
building relationships, building trust, and coming
to a common understanding of what we could
do together to bring back a valid, reliable court
system in Iraq. It was a very rewarding experience
I wouldn’t trade for anything, and it helped me get
well outside my comfort zone as an American.”
Kantwill is a Department of Defense
expert on the financial industry and the
effects its services and products—including
mortgage foreclosures, enforcement actions,
consumer law, and the Military Lending Act—
have upon military members. He frequently
testifies before Senate and House committees
advocating for efforts to better protect
servicemembers in the financial marketplace,
telling the Senate Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs in a June 2012
hearing, “Financial readiness of servicemembers
and their families is essential to their well-being
and ability to contribute to the mission.”
Seeing the world
Judge advocates who receive foreign
assignments get the additional benefit of
absorbing new cultures. “Our kids got to live in
small German towns, go to German schools, and
play on German soccer teams,” says Kantwill, who
had assignments in Würzburg, Nuremberg, and
Katterbach. “It was a unique cultural experience
they value to this day.”
“Being in Europe is an amazing experience—
and it’s not all work,” says Pariza, whose apartment
in downtown Würzburg is right across the street
from a Franconian palace.
Travel to cities and countries near an
overseas assignment is another perk. “I’ve had
the opportunity to take several trips,” says Cherry,
“including one to Dubai in the United Arab
Emirates and another to Muscat, Oman. I loved
them both for different reasons. There’s a lot of
history here in the Middle East, and seeing the
evolution of these societies is really interesting.”
“We get, at a minimum, one four-day
weekend a month that doesn’t count against
vacation days, so I travel extensively,” says
Pariza, whose recent trips have included Estonia,
Finland, and Spain.
Staying the course
The benefits, expected and unexpected,
of life in the JAG Corps make lifelong
converts of many who never expected to
make a career of it. Williams, who never saw
herself in the military until she joined, now can’t
imagine herself out of it. “I’d really like to be
a military judge,” she says. “I love being in the
courtroom, and since a judge brought me into
the Corps, I think that would be a good way to
close the circle.”
Cherry says making a career of military
service is“definitely an option. I’ve loved it
so far and am excited about my follow-on orders.
As strange as it may seem, it’s easy to become
accustomed to and comfortable with the
military lifestyle. You know you’re doing
important work; you know you’ll get to travel
and have job security. And, because you change
assignments every couple of years, you know
you’ll get to try new jobs.
“Sometimes the job and location are
demanding, especially with all that’s going on
in the world right now,” adds Cherry. “It’s not
always easy—it’s a sacrifice at times—but it’s
definitely worthwhile.”
■
His garrison’s
“in-house counsel”
Captain Geoffrey
Pariza (JD ’11)
US Army, Administrative Law
Attorney, Garrison Schweinfurt
Schweinfurt, Germany
››
Captain Geoffrey Pariza balanced law
school with his Illinois Army National Guard
duties—and returned to full-time Army life
as a judge advocate.
Captain
Patrick Farrell
US Army National Guard,
Second-year Loyola law student
Chicago
Army analyst/
law student
Captain Patrick Farrell
spoke at the Hawaii governor’s office on the occasion of his commander, Gary Hara, being promoted to two-star general.
FALL 2013
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LOYOLA LAW
