By Tim Leeming:
We have been told that our friend, former Assistant Public Defender, Ronald P. Alwin has passed away. He retired from the office in 2003.
His son, Scott Alwin has contacted our Office and informed us that services for the family will be at the Denzer Methodist Chuch, Saturday, May 26, 2007 in Denzer Wisconsin. The Cook County legal community will organize a tribute to Ron later in the summer.
As you know, Ron’s charm and easy wit sometimes concealed his first-rate intellect. He grew up in a small town in Wisconsin and received a scholarship which allowed him to graduate from the University of Chicago Law School. He devoted himself to criminal defense work and practiced at the Appeals Division for over 30 years. He taught Legal Appellate Advocacy at Loyola Law School. A quick search on Lexis indicates that Ron had 144 published cases in Illinois, and many hundreds of unpublished opinions. His most recent “big” win was People v. Steven Smith, 708 N.E.2d 365 (1999), perhaps the only death-penalty case ever reversed by the Illinois Supreme Court based on arguments concerning reasonable doubt. The case was featured on the front page of the Chicago Tribune.
Ron was a devoted attorney, a teacher, good company and a friend to many. He is missed.
Here also is a link to the obituary in the Daily Law Bulletin. http://www.chicagolawbulletin.com/news/gettoctext.cfm?TOCUID=22314337