In Memoriam, May - June 2021

Robert J. Blackwell, age 71, of O’Fallon, on March 28, 2021. He established Blackwell & Associates, PC, and served as a Chapter 11 operating or liquidating trustee for numer­ous businesses. Blackwell graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1973. He was a chair for The Missouri Bar’s Commercial Law Committee from 2002-2004.

Robert A. Busch, age 43, of St. Louis, on April 1, 2021. Busch served as executive vice president at Intelica and top overall producer at Gundaker Commercial Group. Busch graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 2004.

Randy M. Crawford, age 42, of Lee’s Summit, on Nov. 12, 2014. Crawford joined The Missouri Bar in 1998.

Daniel W. Deiter, age 80, of Columbia, on Nov. 17, 2020. Deiter practiced law in Montgomery City for 47 years be­fore retiring, including serving as the prosecuting attorney and city attorney for Montgomery City and surrounding communities. He graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1965.

Philip Dupont, age 58, of Kansas City, on March 8, 2021. Dupont practiced law for more than 30 years, focusing on commercial civil litigation and medical malpractice defense. He served as counsel at Sandberg Phoenix and also worked at Husch Blackwell. He graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1988.

Jason M. Gourley, age 37, of Belleville, IL, on Jan. 31, 2021. Gourley graduated from Southern Illinois University School of Law, in Carbondale, and joined The Missouri Bar in 2010. He was a lawyer and partner with Donovan Rose Nester PC Law Firm.

Major D. Hammett, age 78, of Independence, on March 29, 2021. He served as a lawyer for the Jackson County Mental Health Levy Board. Hammett graduated from the Univer­sity of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1968. He served in the U.S. Army.

Robert Scott Killen, age 50, of Cape Girardeau, on April 7, 2021. Killen graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1996. He was an associate with the firm of Oliver, Oliver & Waltz, P.C. Killen also served as Iron County prosecuting attorney and Madison County assistant prosecuting attorney.

William B. Korth, age 90, of Kansas City, on March 19, 2020. He worked as a lawyer in private practice for 30 years. Korth graduated from the University of Missouri- Kansas City School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1963. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard.
Jerome R. Mandelstamm, age 88, of St. Louis, on Dec. 6, 2020. He worked as a public defender before moving into private law and starting his own practice. Mandel­stamm graduated from Harvard University Law School in Cambridge, MA and joined The Missouri Bar in 1957. He served in the U.S. Army.

Robert L. Meeker, age 85, of Leawood, KS, on July 25, 2020. Meeker worked at Davis Law Firm and Prudential Insurance Company before retiring from the Business Men’s Assurance Company as the general counsel and vice president. Meeker joined The Missouri Bar in 1963 after graduating from the University of Kansas School of Law in Lawrence. He served in the U.S. Air Force.

Arnold E. Montgomery, age 80, of St. Louis, on Dec. 27, 2020. Montgomery retired after working with the City of St. Louis. He joined The Missouri Bar in 1974.

Raymond Parnas, age 71, of Danville, CA, on Jan. 1, 2009. He taught law for more than 30 years at the University of California-Davis. Parnas graduated from Washington Uni­versity and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He joined The Missouri Bar in 1964.

Edward Thomas Reilly IV, age 44, of Manchester, on Feb. 3, 2020. Reilly joined The Missouri Bar in 2012.

Willard C. Reine, age 85, of Jefferson City, on July 23, 2020. Reine worked at both Hearnes and Reine, and Dalton, Re­ine, and Seiden. He served as the first general counsel in the Missouri Department of Revenue, as well as an assistant prosecuting attorney, city attorney, and assistant general counsel. Reine graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1960.

Guy G. Rice, age 88, of Blue Springs, on Feb. 1, 2021. Rice practiced law for more than 40 years, including serving as assistant prosecuting attorney and assistant county coun­selor for Jackson County. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law and joined The Mis­souri Bar in 1964. Rice served in the U.S. Army.

Jerome M. Rubenstein, age 94, of St. Louis, on March 10, 2021. Rubenstein graduated from Harvard University School of Law in Cambridge, MA, and joined The Missouri Bar in 1956. He practiced law for more than 50 years, most of those as a partner with Bryan Cave law firm. Rubenstein served in the U.S. Navy.

Lebert D. Schultz, age 78, of Olathe, KS, on Feb. 6, 2021. Schultz was of counsel at Miller & Co and Husch Blackwell.  He also spent time at Knipmeyer, McCann & Millet; Commerce Bank; and Koch Industries. He graduated from the University of Kansas School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1967.

Daniel R. Sokol, age 73, of St. Louis, on April 21, 2021. He practiced family law for 40 years and was a founding member of Capes Sokol law firm. He also served as an as­sistant prosecuting attorney for St. Louis County, a munici­pal judge for St. Louis, and an alternate judge for Clayton. Sokol graduated from Saint Louis University School of Law and joined The Missouri Bar in 1974.

James G. Trimble, age 91, of Kansas City, on Jan. 13, 2021. Trimble practiced law for more than 50 years and was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives. Trimble graduated from the Kansas City School of Law, now part of the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and joined The Missouri Bar in 1956. Trimble served in the U.S. Ma­rine Reserve.