Stories for My Children: the Pursuit of Justice, Adventure, and a Family’s Search for Place

Raised by a troubled yet fun-loving, mostly single mother, Stuart Rich was constantly on the move during his childhood, reminiscent of his pioneer Mormon ancestors. When he was twelve, his family moved from Ogden, Utah, to New Orleans, replacing the stifling Mormon culture for Big Easy decadence.Feeling trapped by the impending Vietnam War lottery draft, Stuart enlisted in the US Army Reserves. After surviving six months of basic training hell, Stuart moved to the Bay Area in search of more opportunity. In law school Stuart found the love of his life, Lisa, only to lose her and his dream of being an attorney when he failed to pass the California State Bar. While defending a stripper’s First Amendment rights to bare her buttocks in public, he schemed to win Lisa back by seeking her help with the case. As young hard charging deputy public defenders, their clients ran the gamut from prostitutes, drug addicts and drunk drivers, to gang bangers, burglars and sex offenders— all desperately in need of legal representation in a criminal justice system stacked against them. Finally married with three kids and practicing criminal defense law together, Lisa and Stuart struggled to balance family life with protecting the rights of their clients. A series of deadly natural and medical calamities during the 1987, 1988, and 1989 World Series games threatened their family’s lives. Accustomed to playing hard together, they pushed the outside limits with long-distance bicycling in the Big Sur, kayaking a storm-driven sea in Baja, Mexico, and backpacking the John Muir Trail. An ugly death penalty murder trial involving a mentally impaired defendant put Lisa to the ultimate test to save his life. Meanwhile, Stuart embarks on solo kayak expeditions in Alaska searching for answers.After seventeen stressful years of criminal defense law, Stuart persuaded Lisa to take a year-long break and head north to Alaska with their young children to search for a better place to raise their family.