Walter Gerash
Prominent attorney Walter Gerash passed away on May 7, 2023, at the age of 96. A memorial service is pending.
Mr. Gerash practiced law in Denver for over five decades, establishing himself as one of the famed defense attorneys of his time.
Born in New York City on Nov. 24, 1926, to Russian Jewish immigrants, Mr. Gerash entered the US Army at the age of 17. When his two-year military service concluded Mr. Gerash attended UCLA and obtained his law degree at DU. He later earned a masters’ degree in history from the University of Chicago.
Mr. Gerash then opened his Denver law practice. Denver historian Phil Goodstein called Mr. Gerash “Denver’s Defender.”
“He was the city’s premier attorney during the last half of the 20th century,” wrote Goodstein. “In countless cases, he was in court defending political radicals and people accused of sensational crimes.
“Often extremely outspoken and eccentric, he blazed a trail for an alternative community.”
Renowned for his theatrical style in court, Mr. Gerash defended numerous high-profile cases, including former boxer Ron Lyle after the murder of his former trainer, and a 19-year-old in Littleton who was accused of killing his parents.
Mr. Gerash also represented music star John Denver in a 1993 DUI case in Aspen, and defended James King, the former Denver police sergeant who was accused of killing four guards at the United Bank of Denver in 1992, in a case dubbed the “Fathers’ Day Massacre.”
“He was larger than life in his career and to the legal community,” Mr. Gerash’s son Dan told the IJN.
Mr. Gerash and son Dan practiced together for five years.
Former law clerk Jeffrey Springer said in the March, 2008 edition of Colorado Super Lawyers Magazine: “He taught me an understanding of what it means to be in a war with the other side. He’s literally a guy that would work out, keep himself unbelievably physically and mentally fit.
“He was always pushing his body and mind to be ready to go to war in the courtroom.”
Goodstein added: “Both in court and on a personal level, Gerash often appeared as if he were highly confused. Critics accused him of having a selective memory. This was something of a guise.
“Suddenly, he sprung alive, tearing apart witnesses during cross-examinations.
“In his highly publicized trials, he came across as both a relentless fighter for his clients and something of a field marshal mobilizing his witnesses as he often ran rings around the prosecution.”
Mr. Gerash closed his law practice in 2010.
“He became a very sweet, loving and generous grandfather and father,” said Dan Gerash.
Survivors are sons Douglass (Kathryn) Gerash and Dan (Karen) Gerash, grandchildren Halle and Will; and brother Gerald Gerash.
Copyright © 2023 by the Intermountain Jewish News
