twice proven

Good trial lawyers, it is said, are good storytellers. Class Day speaker Scott Turow is a case in point. An accomplished Chicago prosecutor, Turow penned bestsellers Presumed Innocent and The Burden of Proof.

And the secret to it all was not getting trainsick on the way to work.

Turow, 43, wrote his critically acclaimed murder mystery Presumed Innocent during his morning commute to downtown Chicago where he worked as U.S. attorney for eight years.

Presumed Innocent sold 712,000 copies in hardcover and 4.3 million copies in paperback. It spent 44 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list, including eight weeks in first place.

The dramatic narrative of Rusty Sabich, a deputy prosecutor in a large, Midwestern city who is accused of murdering his colleague and former mistress, became the subject of the blockbuster movie directed by Alan Pakula and starring Harrison Ford.

"I didn't set out to write a commercial book," Turow told The New York Times in June 1987, "I wasn't pot-boiling. My literary interests have always been serious, in terms of my training, my orientation."

After the success of Presumed Innocent, Turow was able to devote more time to his literary career, reducing his caseload by one half.

Turow's most recent claim to fame is Burden of Proof which, landing in bookstores in the summer of 1990, sold for a record-breaking $3.2 million in paperback rights.

The story centers around Alejandro Stern, the defense attorney from Presumed Innocent who faces his wife's mysterious suicide and his brother-in-law's duplicity.

"I was widely afraid of self-imitation when I began the second book," said Turow to Time magazine. "I'm proud of Burden of Proof, particularly the portrait of Sandy Stern and his complicated involvements in family life."

In an interview with The Crimson last week, Turow said that although the characters and scenes in his novels are completely fictional, "they are definitely related to my life, they're my observations."

And other lawyers familiar with Turow's work say that his many years as a member of the bar render his novels authentic.

"One of the advantages of being a talented lawyer is he's dead in the money in terms of realism," says Howard Pearl, a 1980 Law School graduate who worked with Turow at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago. "Legally and psychologically it [Presumed Innocent] has great insight."

In his novels, Turow explores the moral questions that lawyers confront in their daily practice. In fact, the books dramatize a dilemma which Turow says faces all practicing attorneys: the difference between "doing well and doing good."

"The client's ends are going to dominate, and the ability to do good is sometimes limited." Turow says. "For me, no less than any other lawyer, it's a daily dilemma."

Turow will discuss the challenges of this dilemma in today's address . Turow says hi speech will focus on "where I was on my equivalent class day and the lessons I gleaned 22 yeas down the line."

Turow says he will talk about "the vicis- situdes of life and the burden of beingtalented."

Turow's talents became evident to the generalpublic more than 15 years ago. By the time hegraduated from Harvard Law School in 1978, he hadalready published his first book, One L,which describes his experiences and observationsas a first-year student at the school.

And since then, Turow has spent his lifebalancing the demands of the legal, literary andfamilial worlds.

Born in a North Chicago neighborhood, son of agynecologist father and writer mother, Turow movedto Winnetka, and affluent Chicago suburb when hewas 13.

After writing for the New Trier High Schoolnewspaper, Turow decided to become an author, muchto the dismay of his parents who had envisioned amedical career for their son.

As an English major at Amherst college, Turow,studying under author Tillie Olsen, published ashort story in the Transatlantic Review.

Hoping to establish a literary career, Turowwent to Stanford University on a fellowship tostudy creative writing. He was accompanied by hisone-time blind date and now wife, AnnetteWeisberg.

In the fall of 1970, in his first year atStanford, Turow began writing The WayThings Are, a moralistic novel about a rentstrike which he unsuccessfully tried 25 times topublish.

Thwarted in his first literary endeavor, Turowremained as a teacher at Stanford for two years,before taking the LSATs. Although Turow wasoffered a tenure tracked position at RochesterUniversity and a contract to write movie scripts,he chose Cambridge and law school instead.

"I generally have a fascination with the law,"Turow said. "The duties owed to citizens by thegovernment, by each other...the obligations andkinds of conduct expected."

Immediately, Turow was given a $4000 advance towrite about his law school experiences. Theresult, One L, was published in 1977 duringhis senior year at the school, and has been hailedby Time magazine as the "underground,pass-along classic among law students."

"I learned a lot about myself in law school,"said Turow in a 1990 inverview with Time. "Ifinally got over the '60s. I discovered thatraging inside of me was a competitive, acquisitivelittle Jewish boy from Chicago."

But he toll The Crimson, "No, I don't think[law school] prepared me for the real world."

Turow says that although some of his law schoolclinical experiences introduced him to theprofession, "law school does not aim to and doesnot give a practical approach to law."

He adds that the Law School was not always a"sunny atmosphere," and that it was "intenselycompetitive."

Despite the rough atmosophere, Turow says,"There's honorable intellectual competition...it'sfun and inherently interesting and there are verybright colleagues."

Although Turow hadn't really considered lawschool until his years at stanford, he says he hasalways had a special love and admiration for theprofession.

But Turow agrees that many students choose toenter the law profession because they see it as apath to riches. That is the reason many peopledon't go into teaching which is "a nobleprofession, but grossly underpaid." "Certainlypart of the attraction is making money," Turowsays.

"The law remains attractive because of itscentrality. It's the great preserve of theundergraduates," Turow says. "It's many times forthe student who doesn't know what else to do.

"But they [these students] are usually the oneswho have trouble in the profession," he adds.

Out of law school in 1978, Turow became anassistant U.S. attorney in Chicago. He spent eightyears as a deputy prosecutor and was involved inOperation Greylord, a widespread crackdown topurge the Illinois legal system of corruption andfraud.

Near the end of his tenure, Turow successfullyconvicted Cook County Circuit Judge Reginald J.Holzer, who had served for 20 years before he wasfound guilty of extorting $200,000 in unpaid loansfrom lawyers and others who appeared before him incourt.

Holzer was the fourth Cook County circuit judgeto be convicted in the streak of investigations ofOperation Greylord.

During his tenure, Turow was reprimanded by theFederal Appeals Court for possibly havingobstructed justice by using a defense lawer as aninformant against his own client.

In the case Ofshe v. U.S., a Miami man,Ronald Arthur Ofshe, was arrested on cocainecharges. When Marvin Glass, Ofshe's attorney,learned that he was a target in "OperationGreylord," he offered to provide drug-relatedinformation about Ofshe to the Chicago U.S.Attorney's Office in exchange for favorabletreatment in his own case, according to The NewYork Times.

The Office accepted his offer, and Glass metperiodically with Turow, the designated contactfor the information exchange, according to The NewYork Times.

Turow, who was supported by U.S. attorney AntonValukas, said the Appeals Court's reproaches ofhim for obstruction justice were "disgraceful,lacking in legal or factual basis," and that hisactions were approved by his superiors.

Now, Turow is in private practice on the otherside of the bar, on the defense. And he is stillbalancing three lives.

"I do less legal work and more writing." hesays "I find my life very rich due to both."

And colleagues agree that although his legalsuccesses are overshadowed by his literary ones,Turow remains in their eyes primarily an excellentattorney.

"He's a phenomenally talented lawyer and peopleshouldn't forget that," Pearl says. "He has greatjudgment and wisdom. He knows people and how toanalyze a situation."

And Pearl says he admires the way Turow hasbalanced his two careers and family obligations.

"Scott and his wife thought this out verywell," Pearl says. "It's important to them to notlet this change their lives."

"He needn't be a lawyer but it's real importantto him," Pearl adds.

And meanwhile, between defending and fathering,Turow, who lives in the same house in which hewrote his two bestsellers, still commutes to workevery day. And on the morning train from Wilmetteto the Sears Tower, blueprints for another novelare in the making

Turow's talents became evident to the generalpublic more than 15 years ago. By the time hegraduated from Harvard Law School in 1978, he hadalready published his first book, One L,which describes his experiences and observationsas a first-year student at the school.

And since then, Turow has spent his lifebalancing the demands of the legal, literary andfamilial worlds.

Born in a North Chicago neighborhood, son of agynecologist father and writer mother, Turow movedto Winnetka, and affluent Chicago suburb when hewas 13.

After writing for the New Trier High Schoolnewspaper, Turow decided to become an author, muchto the dismay of his parents who had envisioned amedical career for their son.

As an English major at Amherst college, Turow,studying under author Tillie Olsen, published ashort story in the Transatlantic Review.

Hoping to establish a literary career, Turowwent to Stanford University on a fellowship tostudy creative writing. He was accompanied by hisone-time blind date and now wife, AnnetteWeisberg.

In the fall of 1970, in his first year atStanford, Turow began writing The WayThings Are, a moralistic novel about a rentstrike which he unsuccessfully tried 25 times topublish.

Thwarted in his first literary endeavor, Turowremained as a teacher at Stanford for two years,before taking the LSATs. Although Turow wasoffered a tenure tracked position at RochesterUniversity and a contract to write movie scripts,he chose Cambridge and law school instead.

"I generally have a fascination with the law,"Turow said. "The duties owed to citizens by thegovernment, by each other...the obligations andkinds of conduct expected."

Immediately, Turow was given a $4000 advance towrite about his law school experiences. Theresult, One L, was published in 1977 duringhis senior year at the school, and has been hailedby Time magazine as the "underground,pass-along classic among law students."

"I learned a lot about myself in law school,"said Turow in a 1990 inverview with Time. "Ifinally got over the '60s. I discovered thatraging inside of me was a competitive, acquisitivelittle Jewish boy from Chicago."

But he toll The Crimson, "No, I don't think[law school] prepared me for the real world."

Turow says that although some of his law schoolclinical experiences introduced him to theprofession, "law school does not aim to and doesnot give a practical approach to law."

He adds that the Law School was not always a"sunny atmosphere," and that it was "intenselycompetitive."

Despite the rough atmosophere, Turow says,"There's honorable intellectual competition...it'sfun and inherently interesting and there are verybright colleagues."

Although Turow hadn't really considered lawschool until his years at stanford, he says he hasalways had a special love and admiration for theprofession.

But Turow agrees that many students choose toenter the law profession because they see it as apath to riches. That is the reason many peopledon't go into teaching which is "a nobleprofession, but grossly underpaid." "Certainlypart of the attraction is making money," Turowsays.

"The law remains attractive because of itscentrality. It's the great preserve of theundergraduates," Turow says. "It's many times forthe student who doesn't know what else to do.

"But they [these students] are usually the oneswho have trouble in the profession," he adds.

Out of law school in 1978, Turow became anassistant U.S. attorney in Chicago. He spent eightyears as a deputy prosecutor and was involved inOperation Greylord, a widespread crackdown topurge the Illinois legal system of corruption andfraud.

Near the end of his tenure, Turow successfullyconvicted Cook County Circuit Judge Reginald J.Holzer, who had served for 20 years before he wasfound guilty of extorting $200,000 in unpaid loansfrom lawyers and others who appeared before him incourt.

Holzer was the fourth Cook County circuit judgeto be convicted in the streak of investigations ofOperation Greylord.

During his tenure, Turow was reprimanded by theFederal Appeals Court for possibly havingobstructed justice by using a defense lawer as aninformant against his own client.

In the case Ofshe v. U.S., a Miami man,Ronald Arthur Ofshe, was arrested on cocainecharges. When Marvin Glass, Ofshe's attorney,learned that he was a target in "OperationGreylord," he offered to provide drug-relatedinformation about Ofshe to the Chicago U.S.Attorney's Office in exchange for favorabletreatment in his own case, according to The NewYork Times.

The Office accepted his offer, and Glass metperiodically with Turow, the designated contactfor the information exchange, according to The NewYork Times.

Turow, who was supported by U.S. attorney AntonValukas, said the Appeals Court's reproaches ofhim for obstruction justice were "disgraceful,lacking in legal or factual basis," and that hisactions were approved by his superiors.

Now, Turow is in private practice on the otherside of the bar, on the defense. And he is stillbalancing three lives.

"I do less legal work and more writing." hesays "I find my life very rich due to both."

And colleagues agree that although his legalsuccesses are overshadowed by his literary ones,Turow remains in their eyes primarily an excellentattorney.

"He's a phenomenally talented lawyer and peopleshouldn't forget that," Pearl says. "He has greatjudgment and wisdom. He knows people and how toanalyze a situation."

And Pearl says he admires the way Turow hasbalanced his two careers and family obligations.

"Scott and his wife thought this out verywell," Pearl says. "It's important to them to notlet this change their lives."

"He needn't be a lawyer but it's real importantto him," Pearl adds.

And meanwhile, between defending and fathering,Turow, who lives in the same house in which hewrote his two bestsellers, still commutes to workevery day. And on the morning train from Wilmetteto the Sears Tower, blueprints for another novelare in the making