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This story originally appeared June 1, 2005
| Thursday, Feb 15 2007 6:51 PM
Last Updated: Thursday, Feb 15 2007 6:50 PM
When defense attorney J. Anthony Bryan was young, his aunt told him that he should be a lawyer because he would argue with the pope.
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Photos:
Anthony Bryan, center, who is assisting Kevin Little in the defense of Vincent Brothers, right, listens to prosecutor Lisa Green during a discussion of possible trial date for Brothers, who is shown at right.
Vincent Brothers, right, speaks to Anthony Bryan, the attorney assisting Michael Gardina, not pictured, in Brothers' defense.
That is the kind of dogged sense of right that has driven him to fight on behalf of people accused of heinous crimes for decades and won him the Atticus Finch Award in 2003 given by Kern County defense attorneys.
Like Finch in the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird," Bryan, 65, takes up the cause of the accused -- even if it seems like the chips are stacked against him.
His latest client is Vincent Brothers, who is accused of killing his three young children, including his own 6-week-old baby, his estranged wife and his mother-in-law in one of the most bloody and horrific slayings in Kern County history.
But Bryan is not like Finch in every way. Finch fought racism with a soft-spoken manner.
Bryan is a tornado.
By all accounts, when Bryan fights a point in court he pulls out all the stops.
Good friend and fellow defense attorney Michael Lukehart said one day Bryan was trying to get across a point and started to slam his head on the counsel table, "but just for emphasis," he said.
In court, Bryan seems to be full of energy, pacing back and forth, pouncing on arguments in court.
But Bryan is a latecomer to the Brothers case.
Brothers' primary attorney, Kevin Little, fought for a second attorney to be appointed to the case because the prosecutor's office has made no secret that it is pursuing a death sentence.
Bryan is from the top level of defense attorneys who can be assigned death penalty cases in Kern County.
He said he hasn't been able to get through the thousands of pages of evidence the prosecution turned over about the case.
But the judge said the preliminary hearing, to determine if the prosecution has enough evidence to take the case to trial, will go on anyway.
Little and Bryan are known to be tough in court, but their personalities seem to be opposite.
Bryan is outspoken. Little is more even-tempered.
Bryan fills in a major gap in Little's resume. Little has tried few death penalty cases. That's Bryan's specialty. He has defended people facing death for decades.
"He doesn't hide from a challenge," friend and fellow defense attorney Lukehart said.
Bryan has tried several high-profile cases in Bakersfield.
He defended Juan Villa Ramirez, a man accused of shooting to death a 17-year-old student. Ramirez was sentenced to death in 2001.
Bryan has also tried capital cases in Missouri and Los Angeles, where he was born and started his career.
Those closest to him call his career his greatest passion.
But defense work is a passion that confounds his son, Christopher. He, too, is a lawyer -- a civil attorney.
"I am always surprised at how little he has to work with," he said.
"I prefer to have a winning case. With his cases, it seems like everything is against him. His cases are complete dogs."
Christopher Bryan said that the meaning of his father's work eludes him.
"I feel like I understand the fight philosophically, but I don't know that it makes him a lot of money or frankly makes him very happy. These trials consume him. Some of these people are as bad as it gets and what he is fighting for is life in prison instead of the death penalty, but even a victory there is still a defeat."
But the elder Bryan said his philosophy is simple.
"It's an opportunity to do what little I can to oppose the state," Bryan said.
Outside of work, Bryan loves to read literature and philosophy, listen to symphonies.
His younger brother got him into bicycle riding and soon he knew all the ins and outs of bicycling.
He has many interests outside the law, but he has no plans for retirement.
"I think about writing poetry on the French Riviera, but I haven't found anybody who's willing to pay me," he jokes.
He writes but never allows anybody to read his work.
He also enjoys hunting and is a notorious carnivore, whipping up rabbit chili and bringing pork sausage to his granddaughter's birthday barbecue.
The right to bear arms is paramount for Bryan.
He has long been a member of the NRA and was a leader in the organization for many years.
He also has helped support independence in Northern Ireland.
Bryan isn't shy about his beliefs either. Christopher Bryan said his father would regularly school him in topics small and large.
Lukehart said this makes him a good person to talk with over dinner.
Bryan said these were the types of discussions he would have with his two brothers and parents growing up.
Even at a young age his father, an architect, and his mother would discuss politics and world affairs.
Bryan has developed a broad base of knowledge and refined tastes, but he worked his way through college and law school.
He graduated from Loyola Law School and became a defense attorney when everyone else wanted to get into civil work.
Bryan tried his first murder case in 1970 and won a not guilty verdict.
"I've always been somewhat of a squeaky wheel," Bryan said. "I have the distinct impression I was not given the gift of being able to go along to get along."