ERNEST SPRAY KINNEY
Age 63, Fresno, CA. a defense attorney for high-profile cases in Fresno, such as the 1998 Dana Ewell and Joel Radovich murder trial.
Ernie is survived by his father and mother Ernest & Virginia Kinney his wife, Marion, children Lisa Kappes and Ernest Scott Kinney and five grandchildren.
Ernie is also survived by his siblings, Georgia Bopp, Scott Kinney, Ann Morrett, Mary Kinney and Richard Kinney
∼Famed Fresno criminal defense attorney Ernest Spray Kinney was born to Ernest and Virginia "Yan" Kinney in 1944 in Bishop, a small town in Inyo County, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.
Mr. Kinney attended Fresno State College (now CSUF) where he served as student body president in 1965, and graduated in 1967. In 1968, Mr. Kinney enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a captain during the Vietnam era for three and a half years.
Upon his discharge from the Marines in 1971, he returned to Fresno. Working as a social worker during the day, attending San Joaquin College of Law in the evenings, he earned a Juris Doctorate degree in 1975; spent two and a half years in the Fresno County Public Defender's Office; then embarked on his career as a successful private criminal defense attorney. Best known as a take charge, fiery lawyer with a hard-nosed style, who represented some of the San Joaquin Valley's most notorious defendants, he was considered a force to be reckoned with. It has been said that opposing counsel had better to be on their "A game" when going up against Mr. Kinney.
His tenacity was always evident in Fresno courtrooms during his 32 years practicing law. Mr. Kinney represented some of the region's most notorious defendants. Dana Ewell was convicted in 1998 of murdering his family. Paul Hurth, the former Fresno police officer and Baptist pastor, was found guilty in 2000 of voluntary manslaughter for killing his lover's husband – but avoided a murder conviction, mainly due to Mr. Kinney's efforts.
Over the years, he and fellow defense attorney Eric Green, also a former U.S. Marine, worked on nearly a dozen murder cases together. As defense attorneys for several local criminal gang members, the attorneys took comfort in the fact that they themselves were, after all, former members of the biggest, toughest gang of all: The U.S. Marine Corp.
Mr. Kinney never shied away from the media spotlight, in fact, he embraced it. Friends say he relished publicity. Mr. Kinney was often cited as a legal expert in local news reports and he readily gave interviews, even on short notice. The hallway that led to his office was lined with framed stories printed in The Fresno Bee about cases he tried. Mr. Kinney thrived when it came to publicity and the spotlight. And, as he always insisted, it was for a good cause.
Mr. Kinney readily admitted that his knowledge of the law was not his strength, but rather his ability to connect with jurors and argue vigorously for his clients, which even impressed prosecutors.
As a defense attorney, he had an extremely high acquittal rate. From 1987 until the Ewell trial, Mr. Kinney enjoyed a decade in which all of his clients charged with murder were either acquitted or convicted of a lesser charge. His last trial, a four-defendant murder case, concluded in February, 2008.
One of Mr. Kinney's clients was charged with first-degree murder, but after his impassioned arguments, a jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter – a verdict considered a victory for the defense in the legal community.
In 2004, he was diagnosed with the beginning stages of leukemia. On Good Friday, March 21, 2008, doctors advised Mr. Kinney that his leukemia had become serious. He was ordered to undergo chemotherapy at a Bay Area hospital.
But after more than a month at the hospital, less than half the leukemia had been eradicated. And, to further complicate matters, doctors were unable to locate a matching bone marrow donor. Mr. Kinney soon began to develop pneumonia and a colon infection.
As a testament to the respect this local icon held in the legal community, his courthouse colleagues set up a blood and bone marrow drive in his honor, many local judges and court employees were instrumental in helping out.
Before his hospitalization, Mr. Kinney was handling about 50 criminal cases, including the murder case of a former U.S. Marine accused of killing his 3-month-old son. Many local attorneys stepped in to handle those cases, but Mr. Kinney was a tough act to follow.
In mid-April, doctors said Mr. Kinney had two to eight weeks to live.
True to the end, Mr. Kinney chose to live life, get out and not dwell on sadness. Though his health was failing, he and family members went on a road trip to visit his nephew in Sacramento, and to his parents' home in Bishop, the small town where he was raised, enjoying simple pleasures like the taste of watermelon and catching up with old high school buddies. The day before he died, he picked up the phone, ordered $90 worth of Chinese food and invited friends, judges and attorneys to his house. He said he wanted to throw a party. And did he.
After a hard-fought battle against leukemia, the popular and charismatic Ernie Kinney passed away in his Fresno home surrounded by close family members. He was just 63.
Mr. Kinney's death was a blow to the Fresno legal community, where his take-no-prisoners approach made him a well-known and respected figure by defense attorneys, judges and prosecutors alike. He will be missed.
Mr. Kinney is survived by his mother (Mr. Kinney's father passed away on February 27, 2009), three sisters, two brothers, his wife, two children, and five grandchildren.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, May 3, 2008 at Wolf Lakes Park in Sanger.
Sources: The Inyo Register, and various local news articles.
Age 63, Fresno, CA. a defense attorney for high-profile cases in Fresno, such as the 1998 Dana Ewell and Joel Radovich murder trial.
Ernie is survived by his father and mother Ernest & Virginia Kinney his wife, Marion, children Lisa Kappes and Ernest Scott Kinney and five grandchildren.
Ernie is also survived by his siblings, Georgia Bopp, Scott Kinney, Ann Morrett, Mary Kinney and Richard Kinney
∼Famed Fresno criminal defense attorney Ernest Spray Kinney was born to Ernest and Virginia "Yan" Kinney in 1944 in Bishop, a small town in Inyo County, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.
Mr. Kinney attended Fresno State College (now CSUF) where he served as student body president in 1965, and graduated in 1967. In 1968, Mr. Kinney enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a captain during the Vietnam era for three and a half years.
Upon his discharge from the Marines in 1971, he returned to Fresno. Working as a social worker during the day, attending San Joaquin College of Law in the evenings, he earned a Juris Doctorate degree in 1975; spent two and a half years in the Fresno County Public Defender's Office; then embarked on his career as a successful private criminal defense attorney. Best known as a take charge, fiery lawyer with a hard-nosed style, who represented some of the San Joaquin Valley's most notorious defendants, he was considered a force to be reckoned with. It has been said that opposing counsel had better to be on their "A game" when going up against Mr. Kinney.
His tenacity was always evident in Fresno courtrooms during his 32 years practicing law. Mr. Kinney represented some of the region's most notorious defendants. Dana Ewell was convicted in 1998 of murdering his family. Paul Hurth, the former Fresno police officer and Baptist pastor, was found guilty in 2000 of voluntary manslaughter for killing his lover's husband – but avoided a murder conviction, mainly due to Mr. Kinney's efforts.
Over the years, he and fellow defense attorney Eric Green, also a former U.S. Marine, worked on nearly a dozen murder cases together. As defense attorneys for several local criminal gang members, the attorneys took comfort in the fact that they themselves were, after all, former members of the biggest, toughest gang of all: The U.S. Marine Corp.
Mr. Kinney never shied away from the media spotlight, in fact, he embraced it. Friends say he relished publicity. Mr. Kinney was often cited as a legal expert in local news reports and he readily gave interviews, even on short notice. The hallway that led to his office was lined with framed stories printed in The Fresno Bee about cases he tried. Mr. Kinney thrived when it came to publicity and the spotlight. And, as he always insisted, it was for a good cause.
Mr. Kinney readily admitted that his knowledge of the law was not his strength, but rather his ability to connect with jurors and argue vigorously for his clients, which even impressed prosecutors.
As a defense attorney, he had an extremely high acquittal rate. From 1987 until the Ewell trial, Mr. Kinney enjoyed a decade in which all of his clients charged with murder were either acquitted or convicted of a lesser charge. His last trial, a four-defendant murder case, concluded in February, 2008.
One of Mr. Kinney's clients was charged with first-degree murder, but after his impassioned arguments, a jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter – a verdict considered a victory for the defense in the legal community.
In 2004, he was diagnosed with the beginning stages of leukemia. On Good Friday, March 21, 2008, doctors advised Mr. Kinney that his leukemia had become serious. He was ordered to undergo chemotherapy at a Bay Area hospital.
But after more than a month at the hospital, less than half the leukemia had been eradicated. And, to further complicate matters, doctors were unable to locate a matching bone marrow donor. Mr. Kinney soon began to develop pneumonia and a colon infection.
As a testament to the respect this local icon held in the legal community, his courthouse colleagues set up a blood and bone marrow drive in his honor, many local judges and court employees were instrumental in helping out.
Before his hospitalization, Mr. Kinney was handling about 50 criminal cases, including the murder case of a former U.S. Marine accused of killing his 3-month-old son. Many local attorneys stepped in to handle those cases, but Mr. Kinney was a tough act to follow.
In mid-April, doctors said Mr. Kinney had two to eight weeks to live.
True to the end, Mr. Kinney chose to live life, get out and not dwell on sadness. Though his health was failing, he and family members went on a road trip to visit his nephew in Sacramento, and to his parents' home in Bishop, the small town where he was raised, enjoying simple pleasures like the taste of watermelon and catching up with old high school buddies. The day before he died, he picked up the phone, ordered $90 worth of Chinese food and invited friends, judges and attorneys to his house. He said he wanted to throw a party. And did he.
After a hard-fought battle against leukemia, the popular and charismatic Ernie Kinney passed away in his Fresno home surrounded by close family members. He was just 63.
Mr. Kinney's death was a blow to the Fresno legal community, where his take-no-prisoners approach made him a well-known and respected figure by defense attorneys, judges and prosecutors alike. He will be missed.
Mr. Kinney is survived by his mother (Mr. Kinney's father passed away on February 27, 2009), three sisters, two brothers, his wife, two children, and five grandchildren.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, May 3, 2008 at Wolf Lakes Park in Sanger.
Sources: The Inyo Register, and various local news articles.
ERNEST SPRAY KINNEY
Age 63, Fresno, CA. a defense attorney for high-profile cases in Fresno, such as the 1998 Dana Ewell and Joel Radovich murder trial.
Ernie is survived by his father and mother Ernest & Virginia Kinney his wife, Marion, children Lisa Kappes and Ernest Scott Kinney and five grandchildren.
Ernie is also survived by his siblings, Georgia Bopp, Scott Kinney, Ann Morrett, Mary Kinney and Richard Kinney
∼Famed Fresno criminal defense attorney Ernest Spray Kinney was born to Ernest and Virginia "Yan" Kinney in 1944 in Bishop, a small town in Inyo County, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.
Mr. Kinney attended Fresno State College (now CSUF) where he served as student body president in 1965, and graduated in 1967. In 1968, Mr. Kinney enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a captain during the Vietnam era for three and a half years.
Upon his discharge from the Marines in 1971, he returned to Fresno. Working as a social worker during the day, attending San Joaquin College of Law in the evenings, he earned a Juris Doctorate degree in 1975; spent two and a half years in the Fresno County Public Defender's Office; then embarked on his career as a successful private criminal defense attorney. Best known as a take charge, fiery lawyer with a hard-nosed style, who represented some of the San Joaquin Valley's most notorious defendants, he was considered a force to be reckoned with. It has been said that opposing counsel had better to be on their "A game" when going up against Mr. Kinney.
His tenacity was always evident in Fresno courtrooms during his 32 years practicing law. Mr. Kinney represented some of the region's most notorious defendants. Dana Ewell was convicted in 1998 of murdering his family. Paul Hurth, the former Fresno police officer and Baptist pastor, was found guilty in 2000 of voluntary manslaughter for killing his lover's husband – but avoided a murder conviction, mainly due to Mr. Kinney's efforts.
Over the years, he and fellow defense attorney Eric Green, also a former U.S. Marine, worked on nearly a dozen murder cases together. As defense attorneys for several local criminal gang members, the attorneys took comfort in the fact that they themselves were, after all, former members of the biggest, toughest gang of all: The U.S. Marine Corp.
Mr. Kinney never shied away from the media spotlight, in fact, he embraced it. Friends say he relished publicity. Mr. Kinney was often cited as a legal expert in local news reports and he readily gave interviews, even on short notice. The hallway that led to his office was lined with framed stories printed in The Fresno Bee about cases he tried. Mr. Kinney thrived when it came to publicity and the spotlight. And, as he always insisted, it was for a good cause.
Mr. Kinney readily admitted that his knowledge of the law was not his strength, but rather his ability to connect with jurors and argue vigorously for his clients, which even impressed prosecutors.
As a defense attorney, he had an extremely high acquittal rate. From 1987 until the Ewell trial, Mr. Kinney enjoyed a decade in which all of his clients charged with murder were either acquitted or convicted of a lesser charge. His last trial, a four-defendant murder case, concluded in February, 2008.
One of Mr. Kinney's clients was charged with first-degree murder, but after his impassioned arguments, a jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter – a verdict considered a victory for the defense in the legal community.
In 2004, he was diagnosed with the beginning stages of leukemia. On Good Friday, March 21, 2008, doctors advised Mr. Kinney that his leukemia had become serious. He was ordered to undergo chemotherapy at a Bay Area hospital.
But after more than a month at the hospital, less than half the leukemia had been eradicated. And, to further complicate matters, doctors were unable to locate a matching bone marrow donor. Mr. Kinney soon began to develop pneumonia and a colon infection.
As a testament to the respect this local icon held in the legal community, his courthouse colleagues set up a blood and bone marrow drive in his honor, many local judges and court employees were instrumental in helping out.
Before his hospitalization, Mr. Kinney was handling about 50 criminal cases, including the murder case of a former U.S. Marine accused of killing his 3-month-old son. Many local attorneys stepped in to handle those cases, but Mr. Kinney was a tough act to follow.
In mid-April, doctors said Mr. Kinney had two to eight weeks to live.
True to the end, Mr. Kinney chose to live life, get out and not dwell on sadness. Though his health was failing, he and family members went on a road trip to visit his nephew in Sacramento, and to his parents' home in Bishop, the small town where he was raised, enjoying simple pleasures like the taste of watermelon and catching up with old high school buddies. The day before he died, he picked up the phone, ordered $90 worth of Chinese food and invited friends, judges and attorneys to his house. He said he wanted to throw a party. And did he.
After a hard-fought battle against leukemia, the popular and charismatic Ernie Kinney passed away in his Fresno home surrounded by close family members. He was just 63.
Mr. Kinney's death was a blow to the Fresno legal community, where his take-no-prisoners approach made him a well-known and respected figure by defense attorneys, judges and prosecutors alike. He will be missed.
Mr. Kinney is survived by his mother (Mr. Kinney's father passed away on February 27, 2009), three sisters, two brothers, his wife, two children, and five grandchildren.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, May 3, 2008 at Wolf Lakes Park in Sanger.
Sources: The Inyo Register, and various local news articles.
Age 63, Fresno, CA. a defense attorney for high-profile cases in Fresno, such as the 1998 Dana Ewell and Joel Radovich murder trial.
Ernie is survived by his father and mother Ernest & Virginia Kinney his wife, Marion, children Lisa Kappes and Ernest Scott Kinney and five grandchildren.
Ernie is also survived by his siblings, Georgia Bopp, Scott Kinney, Ann Morrett, Mary Kinney and Richard Kinney
∼Famed Fresno criminal defense attorney Ernest Spray Kinney was born to Ernest and Virginia "Yan" Kinney in 1944 in Bishop, a small town in Inyo County, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.
Mr. Kinney attended Fresno State College (now CSUF) where he served as student body president in 1965, and graduated in 1967. In 1968, Mr. Kinney enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a captain during the Vietnam era for three and a half years.
Upon his discharge from the Marines in 1971, he returned to Fresno. Working as a social worker during the day, attending San Joaquin College of Law in the evenings, he earned a Juris Doctorate degree in 1975; spent two and a half years in the Fresno County Public Defender's Office; then embarked on his career as a successful private criminal defense attorney. Best known as a take charge, fiery lawyer with a hard-nosed style, who represented some of the San Joaquin Valley's most notorious defendants, he was considered a force to be reckoned with. It has been said that opposing counsel had better to be on their "A game" when going up against Mr. Kinney.
His tenacity was always evident in Fresno courtrooms during his 32 years practicing law. Mr. Kinney represented some of the region's most notorious defendants. Dana Ewell was convicted in 1998 of murdering his family. Paul Hurth, the former Fresno police officer and Baptist pastor, was found guilty in 2000 of voluntary manslaughter for killing his lover's husband – but avoided a murder conviction, mainly due to Mr. Kinney's efforts.
Over the years, he and fellow defense attorney Eric Green, also a former U.S. Marine, worked on nearly a dozen murder cases together. As defense attorneys for several local criminal gang members, the attorneys took comfort in the fact that they themselves were, after all, former members of the biggest, toughest gang of all: The U.S. Marine Corp.
Mr. Kinney never shied away from the media spotlight, in fact, he embraced it. Friends say he relished publicity. Mr. Kinney was often cited as a legal expert in local news reports and he readily gave interviews, even on short notice. The hallway that led to his office was lined with framed stories printed in The Fresno Bee about cases he tried. Mr. Kinney thrived when it came to publicity and the spotlight. And, as he always insisted, it was for a good cause.
Mr. Kinney readily admitted that his knowledge of the law was not his strength, but rather his ability to connect with jurors and argue vigorously for his clients, which even impressed prosecutors.
As a defense attorney, he had an extremely high acquittal rate. From 1987 until the Ewell trial, Mr. Kinney enjoyed a decade in which all of his clients charged with murder were either acquitted or convicted of a lesser charge. His last trial, a four-defendant murder case, concluded in February, 2008.
One of Mr. Kinney's clients was charged with first-degree murder, but after his impassioned arguments, a jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter – a verdict considered a victory for the defense in the legal community.
In 2004, he was diagnosed with the beginning stages of leukemia. On Good Friday, March 21, 2008, doctors advised Mr. Kinney that his leukemia had become serious. He was ordered to undergo chemotherapy at a Bay Area hospital.
But after more than a month at the hospital, less than half the leukemia had been eradicated. And, to further complicate matters, doctors were unable to locate a matching bone marrow donor. Mr. Kinney soon began to develop pneumonia and a colon infection.
As a testament to the respect this local icon held in the legal community, his courthouse colleagues set up a blood and bone marrow drive in his honor, many local judges and court employees were instrumental in helping out.
Before his hospitalization, Mr. Kinney was handling about 50 criminal cases, including the murder case of a former U.S. Marine accused of killing his 3-month-old son. Many local attorneys stepped in to handle those cases, but Mr. Kinney was a tough act to follow.
In mid-April, doctors said Mr. Kinney had two to eight weeks to live.
True to the end, Mr. Kinney chose to live life, get out and not dwell on sadness. Though his health was failing, he and family members went on a road trip to visit his nephew in Sacramento, and to his parents' home in Bishop, the small town where he was raised, enjoying simple pleasures like the taste of watermelon and catching up with old high school buddies. The day before he died, he picked up the phone, ordered $90 worth of Chinese food and invited friends, judges and attorneys to his house. He said he wanted to throw a party. And did he.
After a hard-fought battle against leukemia, the popular and charismatic Ernie Kinney passed away in his Fresno home surrounded by close family members. He was just 63.
Mr. Kinney's death was a blow to the Fresno legal community, where his take-no-prisoners approach made him a well-known and respected figure by defense attorneys, judges and prosecutors alike. He will be missed.
Mr. Kinney is survived by his mother (Mr. Kinney's father passed away on February 27, 2009), three sisters, two brothers, his wife, two children, and five grandchildren.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, May 3, 2008 at Wolf Lakes Park in Sanger.
Sources: The Inyo Register, and various local news articles.
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