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Tulsa Criminal Defense Lawyer Kevin Adams Knows What It Means To Struggle

I am a Christian and a follower of Jesus Christ. I grew up poor, I know what hard work is and I understand what it is like to struggle. My father was a steel worker and my grandfather was a sharecropper. Growing up I did not know anyone that had been to college, much less law school. Growing up I didn't think that a poor kid such as myself could even be a lawyer. A Sunday school teacher was the first person that suggested to me that I could be lawyer, that Sunday school teacher planted a seed in me that changed the course of my life and the lives of my family.

I was born in Oklahoma and with exception of the time I spent in the military, I have lived here all my life. I was raised in a working class family, married a working class woman, our children attend public schools and heve been raised with the same working class values we learned as children.

I like helping people facing criminal charges, whether they are falsely accused or they just made some bad decisions.

As a kid I loved sports. I wrestled, boxed, played football and baseball. My boxing coach, Cecil Pettigrew, Cecil had a big influence on my life and Cecil helped to give me the confidence to become a lawyer. I worked my way through college and law school washing dishes, delivering newspapers, delivering pizzas, repossessing cars, and bouncing in bars.

My first year of law school, I reported some corrupt local law enforcement officers, I have a strong dislike for officials that use their power to oppress poor people.

Am I the Right Criminal Defense Lawyer for you?

Well it depends, I certainly don't fit the mold of what most people think a lawyer should be. In college I was not a member of a fraternity. I do not play golf, I have never belonged to a country club and I never will. I wear suits because I am required to wear them for court, not because I enjoy wearing them. I don't have a fancy office or drive a fancy car. I handle everything myself. No secretaries. paralegals or assistants. I do everything, I answer my own phone, make my own copies, do my own legal research and write my own briefs. I take cases that I want to take and I only represent people I want to represent.

I'm not afraid to fight and I try to tell it like it is.

Former Sandite receives Clarence-Darrow Award
By MIKE AVERILL World Staff Writer
11/26/2003

Kevin Adams is proof that with hard work and perseverance, dreams can come true. Adams was recently awarded the Oklahoma Criminal Defense Association's Clarence Darrow Award. Adams first realized he wanted to be a lawyer while attending church. We'd go to church and I always asked questions and the Sunday school teacher didn't always have the answers," he said. "She was the first person to suggest I should become a lawyer. As a kid, F. Lee Bailey and William Kunstler were his heroes. "Lawyers stood up for what they thought was right," Adams said. But, emulating his heroes seemed unachievable. "My family's poor and we didn't know any lawyers. No one in my family had gone to college," he said. "The hardest thing about it, when you're a young child, is keeping in mind you can actually do it." "I think about my daughters, with me being a lawyer and having lawyer friends, to them, it will seem like second nature."

Adams, a 1991 Charles Page High School graduate, didn't just want to be a lawyer; he wanted to be a criminal defense lawyer. "I've always been somebody who roots for the underdog," he said. "Everyone's entitled to a defense. Even though it's unpopular, I never wanted to be a prosecutor." It's not always easy winning cases, Adams said. "There's some point in every case when I think it's impossible," he said. "During the second trial with Leandrew Charles White, the day before the trial ended it wasn't going well." "We had a couple of heavy blows dealt against us. I worked hard that night and then gave the closing the next day. Someone in the court told me it was the best argument he'd ever heard."

Since May 2002, Adams has won six not guilty verdicts in eight serious criminal jury trials. His victories include acquittals in three child abuse cases, two murder cases and a federal drug conspiracy case. His most recent victory was in United States of America v. Ritz. Adams won a verdict of acquittal on the sole count of conspiracy after a three-week jury trial. While nine other defendants were indicted, his client was the only one found not guilty.

A quote he frequently reads by John Adams is "No man in a free country should be denied the right to counsel and a fair trial." "By defending a client, you're ensuring the judicial system works the way it's supposed to," he said. But not everyone understands why he does what he does. "One of my grandfather's friends came over, apparently I knew him as a child. I got ambushed with 'How can you defend them when you know they're guilty?'" he said. "Who determines who's guilty? You have to have a system and this is the system we have and I think it's the best in the world."

Adams is only the second Tulsa attorney to receive the award, and one of the youngest. "I'm certainly pleased," he said. "It's nice to get recognition. Too often, defense is a thankless job." Jim Rowan, a criminal defense attorney in Oklahoma City, nominated Adams for the award. "I think he's a phenom to get his law degree in 2001 and win the Clarence Darrow award a year and a half later," he said. "That's quite an accomplishment. Some lawyers don't do that in a lifetime." Rowan said he likes Adams' style. "He took on Dr. (Robert) Block, one of the smoothest testifiers I've ever seen. Kevin did an impressive job cross examining him," Rowan said. "Somewhere along the line he's learned much on the skills to persuade. He uses repetition, logic and is very animated." Adams' tenacity and hard work ethic also impressed Rowan. "We had a break in a trail and went to his home. The kitchen table was covered with books and papers and I could tell he had been working hard on the case," he said. "And he's just talented. He's got a good head on his shoulders and handles himself well in front of a jury." The Clarence Darrow Award is given annually to an individual attorney for zealous criminal defense advocacy.

"From the Tulsa World, not an endorsement"

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