Robert Campion retired Framingham decide obituary appreciation 91
FRAMINGHAM — Fifteen years in the past, as David Cunis was transitioning into his new part as a judge, he was requested to identify one whom he admired and respected.
The very first name that came to intellect was Decide Robert Campion, who Cunis understood effectively though serving as a lawyer in Framingham District Courtroom.
“He was a quintessential district courtroom choose, a dude who was from the group, who understood the local community and who genuinely served the neighborhood,” Cunis claimed. “They don’t seriously make judges like him any longer — old faculty, but a superb guy.”
Campion died of most cancers Monday at residence in Brewster. He was 91.
He was a sort gentleman with a sturdy feeling of justice and a great heart, mates and family members members reported, introducing that though Campion generally did his best to guarantee justice was served, he did his component to be reasonable and compassionate to defendants.
“He understood that folks have tricky occasions, in particular in the nonviolent offenses,” said Douglas Stoddart, a retired Framingham District Court docket judge who’s now a law firm in Natick. “He was often incredibly thoughtful of the litigants and the legal professionals, just a terrific man.”
Campion was born and lifted in Framingham, and worked in Framingham District Court for almost his whole career.
He graduated from Framingham Significant University in 1948. He went on to examine at Boston College, then earned his law degree at Boston School Regulation School in 1953.
Campion opened his possess legislation company ahead of doing the job for the Framingham District Court docket in the late 1950s.
He initially served as assistant clerk justice of the peace prior to being appointed an affiliate judge in 1982. Campion would go on to be named the court’s presiding choose in 1986, according to his son, Dan Campion.
As a decide, Robert Campion centered on receiving all those who arrived to his courtroom the help they desired to get their lives again on keep track of, frequently getting an solution that relied a lot more on rehabilitation and a lot less so on incarceration, according to his obituary.
“He did justice by recognizing each individual, each litigant, just about every defendant as an person,” Cunis claimed. “He generally took an fascination in a particular person. He never seemed at anyone as merely as a defendant. He looked at them as a human staying.”
Campion relished volunteering at corporations these types of as American Cancer Culture, Framingham Detox Heart, Newton-Wellesley Healthcare facility, Brewster Ladies’ Library, Our Girl of the Cape Catholic Church and Pals In Support Assisting, according to his obituary.
Shortly right after his retirement in 1998, the courthouse produced the Honorable Robert C. Campion Award for Public Assistance. It’s presented each and every yr to a person in the courthouse who has revealed a commitment to community support.
Campion is remembered as a family members gentleman with a fantastic sense of humor and warm coronary heart. He and his late wife of 58 yrs, Mary, had eight youngsters. All survive him, other than for a daughter, Ann, who died in 1982 at age 26.
Campion took coronary heart in the simple fact that his kids had been friends with 1 one more and retained in touch with him. Suitable soon after he retired for a quick even though, he lived with his daughter Carol.
He loved visiting his daughter Susan’s residence in Camden, Maine, and he was frequently frequented by his children, such as his son Bo, who lives in Idaho but expended 5 months this past calendar year taking treatment of his father, prior to a further son, Michael, took over.
Campion under no circumstances skipped his son Tim’s Turkey Trot street races, and liked to operate himself.
He is also survived by 18 grandchildren and 19 fantastic-grandchildren.
“He experienced an remarkable capability to make everyone that he spoke with sense special,” mentioned his daughter Kathy Donahue, of Chelmsford. “He did a lot of company get the job done.”
Tim Campion said he usually hears people today converse about his father.
“I appear in get hold of with individuals pretty much every working day that reference my father and how he has helped them and how awesome he was,” he said.