Skeletons in John Henry Browne’s closet

John Henry Browne says his personal skeletons aren’t in the closet, “they’re on the front lawn.”

There have been a number of profiles articles written about the Seattle defense attorney since he first gained notoriety for defending the notorious.

In 1983, Benjamin Ng was convicted of killing 13 people in the Wah Mee massacre in Seattle. Browne saved Ng from the death penalty by arguing that Ng had suffered a brain injury earlier in his life.

In 1995, Martin Pang was charged with murder for setting warehouse fire that killed four Seattle firefighters. Browne argued that down to a manslaughter conviction, instead of murder.

More recently, Browne defended Colton Harris-Moore, the Barefoot Bandit who admitted to stealing boats, cars and planes. He should be out of prison by his 25th birthday.

Now, Browne is taking on the case of Joint Base Lewis-McChord Staff Sergeant Robert Bales. Bales was charged with 17 counts of murder for the massacre of civilians in Afghanistan.

As Brown begins building his defense, a profile in The New York Times describes Browne as being, “all flair and splash in a city not known for either.”

When he rides the ferry home to Bainbridge Island in the evening, he sits alone, reading or listening to an iPod. (The guitarist William Ackerman is a favorite.)

He says there is “an REI arrogance” about Seattle that he dislikes. He hopes to eventually live full time in Mexico, where he owns a house with his wife of seven years. (He has been married “too many” times, he said, not disclosing the number, which apparently would round up toward double digits.)

His father worked on the Manhattan Project and later for the Atomic Energy Commission. Mr. Browne played bass in the Crystal Palace Guard, a band that opened for some of the most popular bands of the 1960s. His office includes a black-and-white etching of a somber Abraham Lincoln, a framed 45 of “Imagine,” by John Lennon and a sculpture of a laughing Buddha. He is happy to talk about “the curse of awareness” and how he struggles “to keep my ego under control.”

Browne says his law practice is financially suffering. For all the high-profile cases he’s taken on, he doesn’t make much money. He says he was paid $1 for Colton Harris-Moore’s defense.

There has been talk of a fundraising campaign to defend Sgt. Bales. The soldier’s wife, Karilyn Bales, writes in an email these are the conditions for anyone who wants to support the defense: Contributions to the defense fund are welcome only from donors who grieve with Mrs. Bales over the lives that were lost that night, and believe that in America everyone is entitled to a fair trial.

“Over time, the truth will come out. That’s why we have due process under the laws of our country. Unfortunately, due process is very expensive,” she says. She’s taking contributions at this address: Robert Bales defense fund, P.O. Box 2774, Seattle, Washington, 98111.

The Today Show’s Matt Lauer had the first, exclusive interview with Karilyn Bales Monday morning.

By Linda Thomas

AP photo of by Ted S. Warren