April 2009

Smitty Myers: A Spokane Icon

by The Honorable Shelley Szambelan

I should probably start off with an apology, because Smitty and Sandy Sandulo Myers may be slightly embarrassed to read some of what follows. Not because it's scandalous (though I did hear some great stories), unflattering, or untrue, but rather that proclaiming Smitty's accolades is contrary to both his and her genuine humility and self-effacing nature. Sandy would say that this article should be only about her beloved Smitty and his accomplishments. But anyone who knows them knows that an article about Smitty would be incomplete without talking about Sandy — just as he reminds you that his life would be incomplete without her. They are the beloved "First Couple" of Spokane's legal community.

Our legal community is fortunate to have Smithmoore P. Myers as one of us. Smitty's accomplishments are impressive. From modest beginnings,[1] he worked his way from being a night operator at Sacred Heart's switchboard to being, among other things, a federal magistrate judge, United States Attorney for Eastern Washington, and dean of Gonzaga's Law School . . . not once, but twice. All along this path, Smitty embodied the epitome of what a lawyer ought to be, which is why the Spokane County Bar Association named its annual professionalism award in his honor.

Throughout his career, Smitty has had a varied experience with the law, ranging from teaching naval law, being an assistant attorney general, working in private practice in Seattle, as a law school dean and professor, as a federal magistrate judge, to being a United States attorney. Of this spectrum of work, Smitty related that he generally enjoyed trial work the most. Upon further reflection, however, he relayed the following as his favorite experience. His first active duty station in World War II was at Quonset Point Naval Air Station, Rhode Island, where he was assistant to the commanding officer of the training school. "Sounds as if I pretty well ran things, but I did not," he recalled. "I ran errands; I thought up excuses. I taught a class in military courts. And I supervised and advised a 32-member company of students."

While Smitty enjoyed all of that, he and the other teachers/advisors learned near the end of the session that they would have to submit performance grades on each student/advisee. The faculty protested that it was unfair, because they were not well enough acquainted. Although the faculty convinced the commanding officer to eliminate the requirement for future classes, Smitty and the others still had to give grades to the existing class:

My thought, as I reluctantly sat down to compose grades, was that, being deprived of the facts, I would give no one A+ grades and C- or lower ones. Everyone would get a pretty good grade — no one would flunk or get genius-standing. Only one student complained. He told me (in a barely polite manner) that he deserved much better than a B+ grade, and that I was obviously prejudiced. I explained my view of the problem, after which he stomped out of the office with no further conversation.

The man who stomped out was Richard M. Nixon. Ironically, their career paths would cross again. Richard Nixon's ascension to the White House resulted in a change in administrations. Smitty, who had been appointed U.S. Attorney by President Johnson, returned to private practice.

I asked Smitty how the practice of law has changed since he graduated from Gonzaga's law school in 1939. Smitty spoke of the complexity of cases and matters before the courts and lawyers focusing on specific areas of practice. He thought that this was probably a good thing, since they're more highly educated in a particular area of the law, and the firms are bigger, too. While that accommodates the various practice areas, he felt large firms can also tend to be more impersonal.

I asked colleagues what they would want to know about Smitty. Aside from my husband wanting Sandy's recipe for the chocolate chip cookies that she'd made for Smitty's federal jurisdiction class, many wanted to know about the most interesting case or legal experience of Smitty's career. (Author's note: Sandy readily confessed that she didn't bake those wonderful cookies and happily provided the name of the local bakery that did!)

Smitty explained how, with his intense experience in debate since grade school, it was probably only natural that he enjoyed litigation more than any other facet of law practice. Of course, his years in the U.S. Attorney's office gave him the largest volume of cases. He recalled his most memorable case:

[The case involved] prosecution of seven defendants, who were members of an anti-communist society, for conspiring to rob a bank in order to finance a secret and pretty lavish hideout for themselves. Actually, there were eight members of the society, but one went immediately to the Spokane F.B.I. to give them all the facts. He remained a reliable informant through the time when the other seven conspirators assembled at the agreed time and place where they were arrested. The eighth alleged conspirator didn't show up … until trial, when his testimony sent the guilty seven to prison for several years.

Another case after he returned to private practice involved a client Smitty described as a hard-working, very pleasant construction man working in the Northwest. The client had built a substantial building in Washington, D.C., for the federal government. It passed inspection and he was paid. However, the federal government then filed criminal charges against him based on a then-recent law that required the builder to file explanatory materials about the construction job. Smitty cross-examined each government witness about whether they told him about the requirement; each admitted they did not, saying that he should have known based on the then-quite recent statute. Smitty argued, "The government knew this requirement. For God's sake, why didn't they tell him?" The jury acquitted his client in about 10 minutes. Afterwards, the jury wanted to have a drink with the client. Some of the jurors told the client that Smitty's inquiry was the most important question in the case, and that they knew when they walked into the jury room that they would acquit. Smitty said that the client still puts up an occasional building for the government, but they've not prosecuted him since then.

I asked if Smitty had any advice for attorneys, especially new attorneys who are just starting out. Smitty replied that you have to really want to do it and enjoy what you do, especially given that there's a lot of conflict. "Roll with the punches and adapt," he added. He gave the following example of keeping everything in perspective. He had just litigated a hard-fought personal injury case and lost. As he was leaving the courthouse with opposing counsel, a juror saw them laughing together. Perplexed, the juror said, "Aren't you mad at each other?" Smitty and his colleague responded that they weren't mad and that they were friends. The juror asked, "What about up there?" pointing back to the courthouse. Smitty explained that they disagreed and both wanted to convince the jury, wryly noting that obviously his friend had done a better job.

Smitty has been a leader in many different organizations; he has served as student body president at Gonzaga University, student bar president, lieutenant commander in the Navy in WWII, Spokane County Bar president, and dean of Gonzaga University School of Law. I asked Smitty about his secret to success across so many varied settings. In keeping with his modesty, Smitty's simple response was that he likes people very much. He enjoys being with people and working with them. He didn't know of any other reason that contributed to his success.

In recent years, Smitty has been watching the practice of law from the outside, and I wondered if this change in viewpoint had led to any observations. Smitty said that he believes the law and lawyers have improved. With the bar enforcing self-discipline, he feels lawyers are more ethical — but he also thinks they have to work too hard.

Next, I asked Smitty to share something about himself that most people don't know. Smitty explained that he was the first feminist he ever knew. He's never differentiated between men and women — even when others tried to. One example involved ruffling a lot of feathers to convert one of the men's restrooms at the law school into a women's restroom for the lone female law student! He readily acknowledges that his outlook was shaped by the strong women in his life. Many people also don't know that Smitty created the work-study program at Gonzaga's law school.

Smitty has received many honors, including the Gonzaga University Law Medal, the WSBA Professionalism Award, and the WSBA Award of Merit — the highest award given by the WSBA. The SCBA named its professionalism award in his honor in 1994. Smitty is widely revered and admired, and so I asked who he admires and why. Always eager to recognize others, Smitty said he didn't admire just one person. But his immediate response was to name Sandy, who has bravely fought through serious illness. While Smitty is fond of saying that he knew that he'd marry Sandy as soon as he saw her (and crashed into the counter as he saw her "vision of loveliness") decades ago, the feeling is mutual. During the interview, she referred to Smitty as her "next breath." More people should be so lucky as to have that kind of enduring love.

Smitty also recognized two other strong women as people he admired and who most impacted his life. His mother, Julia, "worked like a dog" to single-handedly raise Smitty and his two siblings. She endured hardship and challenges, including tragedy when Smitty's brother, Robert, died from rheumatic fever. Her determination provided a good role model and the impetus for Smitty's success:

In first grade, I received a D and an F for public speaking. I didn't want to get up in front of everyone. Mom chastised me and went to the teacher, explaining that I can sure talk. Mom then went to my desk and said, "You get up, you talk." I was a very obedient son.

And it was a good thing, because Smitty went on to be a champion debater in high school and college, as well as a skilled orator. One day, Smitty was walking with his mom and feeling guilty about his desire to go to law school. The lack of income would affect the family, but his mother said, without hesitating, "If that is what you want to do, then that is what we will do."

His fourth-grade teacher, Mary Stewart, also had a large impact on his life. She was a young woman whose father had died shortly after bringing her over from Ireland. In addition to being smart and strong, she was a shrewd investor. She bought one share of Sears Roebuck stock and, during the Depression, kept buying stock at a discount. When Gonzaga's president went to solicit a donation from her, she told Father Coughlin that he'd better bring Smitty.

On the legal front, Smitty told me about his admiration for two federal judges from the Eastern District of Washington. Smitty told how impressed he was with Judge Charles Powell, who was one of the lawyers trying a lengthy (over 100 days) and hotly contested matter over which Smitty presided. Though the opponent lost his temper several times, Powell never did. "He came very close a few times, but would remain silent for a few a moments and speak only after his internal battle had been won." Later, Smitty tried cases before Judge Powell, who kept order in his courtroom without ever raising his voice or losing his temper.

Another federal judge Smitty admired was Judge J. Stanley Webster. Smitty had heard a lot about this judge and his brilliance on the bench. When the local paper announced that Judge Webster would be hearing argument and announcing his decision the following day, Smitty resolved to be there.

I was early enough to have a good seat. By the time he appeared on the bench, the courtroom was full. After the lawyers had occupied two or three minutes, and then became silent, he turned to his left and put his feet up on something like a padded table, which permitted him to lie in a position of rest. He lay in a completely horizontal position, announced the case, and began to talk, without the slightest reference to notes. It sounded like a carefully prepared, completely written decision. But he spoke extemporaneously outlining the decision and his reasons. At times he would stop and say nothing for several moments — obviously working his way through a problem. Then, he would continue the process, which seemed like reading. They tell me many of his decisions were made in this manner. A brilliant man.

For those of you who have not had the privilege of knowing Smitty, an article by John Powers[1] gives more detail as to what has been an extraordinary legal career. I am grateful to have had an enjoyable afternoon visit with Smitty and Sandy, who both give so generously to our Bar and make Spokane a better place in which to practice.  

Shelley Szambelan is a judge for the Municipal Court of Spokane. She may be contacted at sszambelan@spokanecity.org.

NOTES

1. Powers, John, "Alumni Profiles," The Lawyer, Summer 2004, pp. 15–19.