Gerhard Gesell

Gerhard Alden Gesell (June 16, 1910 – February 19, 1993) was a United States federal judge. He presided over trials of the Watergate Seven in 1974.

Early life and education

Born in Los Angeles, California, Gesell received an A.B. from Yale University in 1932, and an LL.B. from Yale Law School in 1935.

Early career

He was a Trial Attorney for the Securities and Exchange Commission from 1935 to 1940, and then a Technical Advisor to the SEC chairman from until 1941. He was in private practice in Washington, D.C. from 1941 to 1967. In 1945 and 1946, he served as chief Assistant Counsel for the Democrats' side during the Pearl Harbor hearings. He chaired the President's Committee on Equal Opportunity in the Armed Forces from 1962 to 1964.

Federal judicial service

On November 29, 1967, Gesell was nominated by President Lyndon B. Johnson to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia vacated by Spottswood W. Robinson, III. Gesell was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 7, 1967, and received his commission on December 12, 1967.

Watergate trials

In 1974, Gesell presided over trials of the so-called Watergate Seven, arising from dozens of felony charges in the Watergate scandal. All the defendants had held cabinet rank or senior staff positions in the White House of President Richard Nixon. Those convicted or pleading guilty in these trials were: John N. Mitchell, H. R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman, Charles Colson, Gordon Strachan, and Robert Mardian. Kenneth W. Parkinson was acquitted.

Iran-Contra trial

In 1989, Gesell was the presiding judge in the government's case against National Security Adviser Oliver North, who was convicted of aiding and abetting obstruction of a congressional inquiry into the Iran-Contra arms sale. North also was convicted of ordering the destruction of documents and accepting an illegal gratuity. On July 5, 1989, Gesell probated North's three-year prison sentence, but fined him $150,000, sentenced him to 1,200 hours community service and placed him on two years' probation. These convictions, however, were subsequently vacated by an appeals court, because North had been granted immunity for his testimony to Congress. After further hearings on the immunity issue, Judge Gesell dismissed all charges against North on September 16, 1991.

Death

Gesell assumed senior status on January 22, 1993 and served in this status until his death four weeks later, in Washington, D.C.

Sources

• Gerhard Gesell at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.