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Former Court of Appeals of Indiana Judge William I. Garrard, 91, died June 2.
According to a COA release, Garrard was appointed to the appellate court in 1974 by Gov. Otis Bowen, where he served for 26 years. He retired in 2000, but continued to serve as a senior judge for an additional 16 years.
Garrard’s COA opinions were known for their directness, lucidity and brevity, according to the court.
His most notable opinion he wrote was Casselman v. State that established Indiana’s “Castle Doctrine,” which provides a measure of legal protection for homeowners who resist unlawful entry into their homes by law enforcement officers.
Garrrard graduated from Indiana University School of Law in Bloomington in 1959 after serving in the U.S. Army.
He first began his law career with Graham, Rasor, Eschbach & Harris in Warsaw where he practiced for 15 years.
While there, he also served as deputy prosecutor from 1959 to 1969. Garrard then moved on to private practice before becoming a COA judge.
Garrard served as an adjunct professor at the IU School of Law in Bloomington for 10 years and was active in the leadership of many bar associations and civic organizations.
He is a recipient of Wabash College’s David Peck Medal, three Sagamore of the Wabash awards given by Governors Otis Bowen, Evan Bayh, and Frank O’Bannon, and the Indiana State Bar Association’s Presidential Citation. He was inducted into the Indiana University School of Law Academy of Law Alumni Fellows in 2000.
Indiana Lawyer reported Garrard was reprimanded in 2016 by the Indiana Supreme Court after he pleaded guilty to OWI endangering a person, a Class A misdemeanor.
He immediately self-reported the arrest and conviction, regularly attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and had been cooperative with the Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications, according to the court’s per curiam decision.
Garrard is survived by his wife, Linda L. Chezem and his children, Michael Garrard, Kathleen West, Kelly Smith, and a daughter of the heart, Sally Ann Wood, and his nine grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Funeral services were held on June 12 at Van Cleve Community Church in Brazil. Condolences to the family can be made at here at fergusonlee.com.
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