David Bruck
| David Isaac Bruck | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1949 (age 67–68) Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Education |
Harvard College (B.A.) University of South Carolina School of Law (J.D.) |
| Occupation | Criminal Defense Attorney |
| Parent(s) | Gerald and Nina Bruck |
| Website | Washington & Lee Faculty Profile |
David Isaac Bruck (born 1949) is an American criminal defense attorney, clinical professor of law at Washington and Lee University School of Law, and director of the Virginia Capital Case Clearinghouse. Bruck has represented several high-profile defendants.
Bruck was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada to an affluent family. Bruck is one of three children of Gerald, a retired textile executive, and Nina, a photographer.
While an undergraduate at Harvard College, Bruck became involved in the anti-Vietnam War movement. Bruck was a contributor to The Harvard Crimson. In one piece, he called on students to refuse to take their finals in protest of Harvard University. Bruck earned a Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude from Harvard College in 1971.
After college, Bruck attended University of South Carolina School of Law. He went to law school at the University of South Carolina so that he could advise reluctant inductees at the Army's Fort Jackson. During law school, Bruck worked as a welder to pay for his schooling because he didn't want to be beholden to his family. While at the University of South Carolina, he met his friend and colleague Judy Clarke. He earned his law degree cum laude in 1975. Before beginning his law practice, he travelled throughout the United States and Canada.
Bruck eventually returned to South Carolina to represent clients facing the death penalty because he did not believe these defendants were receiving adequate representation. Bruck was also disturbed that the death row population consisted mostly of poor black men. One fellow law school classmates said of Bruck: "He wanted to assist people who were defenseless. Many of us felt that way in school, but David was one of the few who devoted his career to it."
From 1976-1980, Bruck worked as a public defender in South Carolina. From 1980-1988, Bruck worked in private practice. From 1989-92, Bruck was the Chief Attorney of the South Carolina Office of Appellate Defense. From 1992-2004, Bruck returned to private practice. Since 1992, Bruck served as Federal Death Penalty Resource Counsel to the federal defender program. Bruck represented Zayd Hassan Abd al-Latif Masud al-Safarini who received a life sentence for his role in the 1986 hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Pakistan in which 22 people were killed. David Bruck handled as many death penalty cases as he could in South Carolina. Bruck represented dozens of people charged with capital murder before juries or on post-conviction. Before his representation of Susan Smith in 1995, Bruck had only lost three to death sentences. Bruck saved many of his clients by winning new trials that resulted in life sentences and in one case, an acquittal. Bruck has argued several cases before the United States Supreme Court, prevailing in six of them: Kelly v. South Carolina (2002), Shafer v. South Carolina (2001), Ramdass v. Angelone (2000), Simmons v. South Carolina (1994), Yates v. Evatt (1991), Yates v. Aiken (1988), Skipper v. South Carolina (1986).
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