Kenneth Starr
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Kenneth Winston Starr (July 21, 1946 – September 13, 2022) was an American lawyer and judge who as
independent counsel The Office of Special Counsel was a prosecutorial unit within the United States Department of Justice that operated from 1978 until the expiration of its statutory authority on December 31, 1999. Created by the Ethics in Government Act o ...
authored the
Starr Report The ''Starr Report'', officially the Referral from Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr in Conformity with the Requirement of Title 28, United States Code, Section 595(c), is a Federal government of the United States, United States federal gove ...
, which served as the basis of the
impeachment of Bill Clinton Bill Clinton, the List of presidents of the United States, 42nd president of the United States, was Federal impeachment in the United States, impeached by the United States House of Representatives of the 105th United States Congress on Decem ...
. He headed an investigation of members of the
Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...
, known as the
Whitewater controversy The Whitewater controversy, Whitewater scandal, Whitewatergate, or simply Whitewater, was an American political controversy during the 1990s. It began with an investigation into the real estate investments of Bill and Hillary Clinton and their ...
, from 1994 to 1998. Starr previously served as a federal appellate judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1983 to 1989 and as the U.S. solicitor general from 1989 to 1993 during the presidency of
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
. Starr received the most public attention for his tenure as
independent counsel The Office of Special Counsel was a prosecutorial unit within the United States Department of Justice that operated from 1978 until the expiration of its statutory authority on December 31, 1999. Created by the Ethics in Government Act o ...
while
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
was U.S. president. Starr was initially appointed to investigate the suicide of deputy White House counsel Vince Foster and the Whitewater real estate investments of Clinton. The three-judge panel charged with administering the
Ethics in Government Act The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 is a United States federal law that was passed in the wake of the Nixon Watergate scandal and the Saturday Night Massacre. It was intended to fight corruption in government. Summary The Ethics in Governmen ...
later expanded the inquiry into numerous areas including suspected
perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...
about Clinton's sexual affair with Monica Lewinsky. After more than four years of investigation, Starr filed the Starr Report, which alleged that Clinton lied about the existence of the affair during a sworn deposition. The allegation led to the impeachment of Clinton and the five-year suspension of Clinton's Arkansas law license. Starr served as the dean of the
Pepperdine University School of Law The Pepperdine University School of Law (officially the Pepperdine University Rick J. Caruso School of Law) is the law school of Pepperdine University, a private research university in Los Angeles County, California. The school offers the Juri ...
. He was later both the president and the chancellor of
Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...
in
Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and Interstate 35, I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin, Texas, Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 popul ...
, from June 2010 until May and June 2016, respectively, and at the same time the Louise L. Morrison chair of constitutional law at Baylor Law School. On May 26, 2016, following an investigation into the mishandling by Starr of several sexual assaults at the school, Baylor University's board of regents announced that Starr's tenure as university president would end on May 31. The board said he would continue as chancellor, but on June 1, Starr resigned that position with immediate effect. On August 19, 2016, Starr announced he would also resign from his tenured professor position at Baylor Law School, completely severing his ties with the university in a "mutually agreed separation", following accusations that he ignored allegations of sexual assault on campus. On January 17, 2020, Starr joined President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
's legal team during his first impeachment trial.


Early life and education

Starr was born near
Vernon, Texas Vernon is a city and the county seat of Wilbarger County, Texas, United States. and as of the 2010 census had a population of 11,002. History The original town was called Eagle Springs by the indigenous community as early as 1858. After t ...
, the son of Vannie Maude (Trimble) and Willie D. Starr, and was raised in Centerville, Texas. His father was a minister in the
Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ, also commonly known as the Church of Christ, is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations located around the world. Typically, their distinguishing beliefs are that of the necessity of baptism for salvation ...
who also worked as a barber. Starr attended Sam Houston High School in
San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...
and was a popular, straight‑A student. His classmates voted him most likely to succeed. In 1970, Starr married Alice Mendell, who was raised Jewish but converted to Christianity. They had three children. Starr attended the
Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ, also commonly known as the Church of Christ, is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations located around the world. Typically, their distinguishing beliefs are that of the necessity of baptism for salvation ...
–affiliated
Harding University Harding University is a Private university, private Christian university with its main campus in Searcy, Arkansas, United States. Established in 1924, the institution offers Undergraduate education, undergraduate, Postgraduate education, gradu ...
in
Searcy, Arkansas Searcy ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of White County, Arkansas, United States. According to 2019 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 23,767. It is the principal city of the Searcy, AR Micropolitan Statisti ...
, where he was an honor student, a member of the Young Democrats, and a vocal supporter of Vietnam protesters. He later transferred to
George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...
, in Washington, D.C., where he received a Bachelor of Arts in history, in 1968. While there, he became a member of Delta Phi Epsilon. Starr was not drafted for military service during the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, as he was classified 4‑F, because he had
psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by patches of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small localized patches to complete b ...
. He worked in the Southwestern Advantage entrepreneurial program and later attended
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
, where he earned a Master of Arts degree in 1969. Starr then attended the Duke University School of Law, where he was an editor of the ''
Duke Law Journal The ''Duke Law Journal'' is a student-run law review and the premier legal periodical of Duke University School of Law. The journal publishes general-interest articles and student notes in eight issues each year. History and Overview The journ ...
'' and graduated with a
Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...
in 1973.


Legal career

After he graduated from law school, Starr was a
law clerk A law clerk, judicial clerk, or judicial assistant is a person, often a lawyer, who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by Legal research, researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial ...
to judge David W. Dyer of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1973 to 1974. From 1975 to 1977, he clerked for chief justice
Warren E. Burger Warren Earl Burger (September 17, 1907 – June 25, 1995) was an American attorney who served as the 15th chief justice of the United States from 1969 to 1986. Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Burger graduated from the William Mitchell College o ...
of the
U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
. In 1977, Starr joined the Washington, D.C., office of the Los Angeles–based law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher (now Gibson Dunn). In 1981 he was appointed counselor to U.S. attorney general
William French Smith William French Smith II (August 26, 1917 – October 29, 1990) was an American lawyer and the 74th United States Attorney General. After attaining his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1942, Smith went on to join the law firm of Gibson, Dun ...
. Starr was a member of the
Federalist Society The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies (FedSoc) is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative and Libertarianism in the United States, libertarian legal organization that advocates for a Textualism, textualist an ...
.


Federal judge and solicitor general

On September 13, 1983, he was nominated by
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
to a seat on the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. courts of appeals, ...
vacated by George MacKinnon. He was confirmed by the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
on September 20, 1983, and received his commission on September 20, 1983. He resigned on May 26, 1989. Starr was the
United States solicitor general The solicitor general of the United States (USSG or SG), is the fourth-highest-ranking official within the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), and represents the federal government in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States. ...
, from 1989 to 1993, under
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
.


Early 1990s

When the
United States Senate Select Committee on Ethics The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics is a Select or special committee (United States Congress), select committee of the United States Senate charged with dealing with matters related to senatorial ethics. It is also commonly referred to ...
needed someone to review Republican senator
Bob Packwood Robert William Packwood (born September 11, 1932) is an American retired lawyer and politician from Oregon who served as a member of the United States Senate from 1969 to 1995. He resigned from the U.S. Senate under threat of expulsion, in 1995 ...
's diaries, the committee chose Starr. In 1990, Starr was the leading candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court nomination after William Brennan's retirement. He encountered strong resistance from the Department of Justice leadership, which feared Starr might not be reliably conservative as a Supreme Court justice. George H. W. Bush nominated
David Souter David Hackett Souter ( ; September 17, 1939 – May 8, 2025) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1990 until his retirement in 2009. Appointed by President George H ...
instead of Starr. Starr also considered running for the United States Senate, from Virginia in 1994, against incumbent
Chuck Robb Charles Spittal Robb (born June 26, 1939) is an American former U.S. Marine Corps officer and politician who served as the 64th governor of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 and a United States senator representing Virginia from 1989 until 2001. A me ...
, but opted against opposing
Oliver North Oliver Laurence North (born October 7, 1943) is an American political commentator, television host, military historian, author, and retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. A veteran of the Vietnam War, North was a National Sec ...
for the Republican nomination.


Independent counsel


Appointment

In August 1994, pursuant to the newly reauthorized
Ethics in Government Act The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 is a United States federal law that was passed in the wake of the Nixon Watergate scandal and the Saturday Night Massacre. It was intended to fight corruption in government. Summary The Ethics in Governmen ...
(), Starr was appointed by a special three-judge division of the D.C. Circuit to continue the Whitewater investigation. He replaced Robert B. Fiske, a moderate Republican who had been appointed by attorney general
Janet Reno Janet Wood Reno (July 21, 1938 – November 7, 2016) was an American lawyer and public official who served as the 78th United States Attorney General, United States attorney general from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. A member of ...
. Starr took the position part-time and remained active with his law firm,
Kirkland & Ellis Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1909, Kirkland & Ellis has been the largest law firm in the world by revenue since 2017 and, as of 2025, is the seventh-largest by number ...
, as this was permitted by statute and was also the norm with previous independent counsel investigations. As time went on, he was increasingly criticized for alleged
conflicts of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations in whi ...
stemming from his continuing association with Kirkland & Ellis. Kirkland, like several other major law firms, was representing clients in litigation with the government, including tobacco companies and auto manufacturers. The firm itself was being sued by the
Resolution Trust Corporation Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) was a U.S. government-owned asset management company first run by Lewis William Seidman and charged with liquidating assets, primarily real estate-related assets such as mortgage loans, that had been assets ...
, a government agency involved in the Whitewater matter. Additionally, Starr's own actions were challenged because Starr had, on one occasion, talked with lawyers for Paula Jones, who was suing Bill Clinton over an alleged sexual harassment. Starr had explained to them why he believed that sitting U.S. Presidents are not immune to civil suit. When this constitutional question ultimately reached the Supreme Court, the justices unanimously agreed.


Investigation of the death of Vince Foster

On October 10, 1997, Starr's report on the death of deputy White House counsel Vince Foster, drafted largely by Starr's deputy
Brett Kavanaugh Brett Michael Kavanaugh (; born February 12, 1965) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President Donald Trump on July 9, 2018, and has served since Oct ...
, was released to the public by the Special Division. The complete report is 137 pages long and includes an appendix added to the Report by the Special Division over Starr's objection. The report agrees with the findings of previous independent counsel Robert B. Fiske that Foster committed suicide at Fort Marcy Park, in Virginia, and that his suicide was caused primarily by undiagnosed and untreated depression. As CNN explained on February 28, 1997, "The tarrreport refutes claims by conservative political organizations that Foster was the victim of a murder plot and coverup," but "despite those findings, right-wing political groups have continued to allege that there was more to the death and that the president and first lady tried to cover it up."
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
also noted that organizations pushing the murder theory included the ''
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review The ''Pittsburgh Tribune-Review'', also known as "the Trib", is the second-largest daily newspaper serving the Greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area of Western Pennsylvania. It transitioned to an all-digital format on December 1, 2016, but rema ...
'', owned by billionaire
Richard Mellon Scaife Richard Mellon Scaife (; July 3, 1932 – July 4, 2014) was an American billionaire, a principal heir to the Mellon family, Mellon banking, oil, and aluminum fortune, and the owner and publisher of the ''Pittsburgh Tribune-Review''. In 2005 ...
, and
Accuracy in Media Accuracy in Media (AIM) is an American non-profit conservative news media watchdog founded in 1969 by economist Reed Irvine. AIM supported the Vietnam War and blamed media bias for the U.S. loss in the war. During the Reagan administration, ...
, supported in part by Scaife's foundation. Scaife's reporter on the Whitewater matter, Christopher Ruddy, was a frequent critic of Starr's handling of the case.


Expansion of the investigation

The law conferred broad investigative powers on Starr and the other independent counsels named to investigate the administration, including the right to subpoena nearly anyone who might have information relevant to the particular investigation. Starr would later receive authority to conduct additional investigations, including the firing of White House Travel Office personnel, potential political abuse of confidential FBI files,
Madison Guaranty Madison Guaranty Savings and Loan Association was a savings and loan association based in Little Rock, Arkansas. The company operated from 1979 until 1989 when it was shut down by federal regulators as a result of bank failure, leading to a loss ...
,
Rose Law Firm Rose Law Firm is an American law firm headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. It dates its origins to November 1, 1820, sixteen years before Arkansas statehood, when Robert Crittenden, born 1797, and Chester Ashley, born 1791, entered into an a ...
, Paula Jones
lawsuit A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today ...
and, most notoriously, possible perjury and obstruction of justice to cover up President Clinton's sexual relationship with
Monica Lewinsky Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American activist. Lewinsky became internationally known in the late 1990s after U.S. President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an affair with her during her days as a White House intern ...
. The Lewinsky portion of the investigation included the secret taping of conversations between Lewinsky and coworker Linda Tripp, requests by Starr to tape Lewinsky's conversations with Clinton, and requests by Starr to compel Secret Service agents to testify about what they might have seen while guarding Clinton. With the investigation of Clinton's possible adultery, critics of Starr believed that he had crossed a line and was acting more as a political hit man than as a prosecutor.


Clinton–Lewinsky scandal, Paula Jones lawsuit

In his deposition for the Paula Jones lawsuit, Clinton denied having "sexual relations" with Monica Lewinsky. On the basis of the evidence provided by
Monica Lewinsky Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American activist. Lewinsky became internationally known in the late 1990s after U.S. President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an affair with her during her days as a White House intern ...
, a blue dress stained with Clinton's
semen Semen, also known as seminal fluid, is a bodily fluid that contains spermatozoon, spermatozoa which is secreted by the male gonads (sexual glands) and other sexual organs of male or hermaphrodite, hermaphroditic animals. In humans and placen ...
, Ken Starr concluded that this sworn testimony was false and perjurious. During the deposition in the Jones case, Clinton was asked, "Have you ever had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky, as that term is defined in Deposition Exhibit 1, as modified by the Court?" The definition included contact with the genitalia, anus, groin, breast, inner thigh, or buttocks of a person with an intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of that person, any contact of the genitals or anus of another person, or contact of one's genitals or anus and any part of another person's body either directly or through clothing. The judge ordered that Clinton be given an opportunity to review the agreed definition. Clinton flatly denied having sexual relations with Lewinsky. Later, at the Starr
grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...
, Clinton stated that he believed the definition of "sexual relations" agreed upon for the Jones deposition excluded his receiving
oral sex Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth). Cunnilingus is oral sex performed on the vu ...
. Starr's investigation eventually led to the impeachment of President Clinton, with whom Starr shared ''
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
''s Man of the Year designation for 1998. Following his impeachment, the president was acquitted in the subsequent trial before the United States Senate as all 45 Democrats and 10 Republicans voted to acquit.


Second thoughts on DOJ request

In 2004, Starr expressed regret for ever having asked the Department of Justice to assign him to oversee the Lewinsky investigation personally, saying, "the most fundamental thing that could have been done differently" would have been for somebody else to have investigated the matter.


Criticism and political satire

As with many controversial figures, Kenneth Starr was the subject of political satire. For example, the book, ''And the Horse He Rode in On'' by James Carville attempted to portray Mr. Starr's time as special prosecutor in comically negative light.


Post-independent counsel activities

After five years as independent counsel, Starr resigned and returned to private practice as an appellate lawyer and a visiting professor at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
, the Chapman University School of Law, and the
George Mason University School of Law The Antonin Scalia Law School is the law school of George Mason University, Virginia's largest public research university. It is located in Arlington, Virginia, roughly west of Washington, D.C., and east-northeast of George Mason University's ...
. Starr worked as a partner at
Kirkland & Ellis Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1909, Kirkland & Ellis has been the largest law firm in the world by revenue since 2017 and, as of 2025, is the seventh-largest by number ...
, specializing in litigation. He was one of the lead attorneys in a
class-action A class action A class action is a form of lawsuit. Class Action may also refer to: * ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio * Class Action (band), a garage house band * "Class Action" (''Teenage R ...
lawsuit filed by a coalition of liberal and conservative groups (including the
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...
and the
National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
) against the regulations created by the
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (, ), commonly known as the McCain–Feingold Act or BCRA ( ), is a United States federal law that amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing of political campaign ...
of 2002, known informally as McCain- Feingold Act. On April 6, 2004, he was appointed dean of the
Pepperdine University School of Law The Pepperdine University School of Law (officially the Pepperdine University Rick J. Caruso School of Law) is the law school of Pepperdine University, a private research university in Los Angeles County, California. The school offers the Juri ...
. He originally accepted a position at Pepperdine as the first dean of the newly created School of Public Policy in 1996. He withdrew from the appointment in 1998, several months after the Lewinsky controversy erupted. Critics charged that there was a conflict of interest due to substantial donations to Pepperdine from billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife, a Clinton critic who funded many media outlets attacking the president. In 2004, some five years after President Clinton's impeachment, Starr was again offered a Pepperdine position at the School of Law and this time accepted it.


Death penalty cases

In 2005, Starr worked to overturn the death sentence of
Robin Lovitt Robin McKennel Lovitt (born November 6, 1963) is a convicted murderer in the U.S. state of Virginia. He was sentenced to death, after being convicted of the November 18, 1998, stabbing murder of Clayton Dicks in Arlington County, Virginia. Lovitt ...
, who was on
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
's
death row Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting executio ...
for murdering a man during a robbery in 1998. Starr provided his services to Lovitt
pro bono ( English: 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. The term traditionally referred to provision of legal services by legal professionals for people who a ...
. On October 3, 2005, the Supreme Court denied
certiorari In law, ''certiorari'' is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. ''Certiorari'' comes from the name of a prerogative writ in England, issued by a superior court to direct that the recor ...
. On January 26, 2006, the defense team of convicted murderer Michael Morales (which included Starr) sent letters to
California governor The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, th ...
Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...
requesting clemency for Morales. Letters purporting to be from the jurors who determined Morales's death sentence were included in the package sent to Schwarzenegger. Prosecutors alleged that the documents were forgeries, and accused investigator and anti-death penalty activist Kathleen Culhane of falsifying the documents. Lead defense attorney David Senior and his team soon withdrew the documents. Ultimately, clemency was denied, but the falsified documents were not used in the rationale. Eventually, Culhane was criminally charged with forging the documents and, under a plea agreement, was sentenced to five years in prison.


''Morse v. Frederick''

On May 4, 2006, Starr announced that he would represent the
school board A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...
of
Juneau, Alaska Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Southeast Alaska, Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the ...
, in its appeal to the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
in a case brought by a former student, Joseph Frederick. A high school student at that time, Joseph Frederick unfurled a banner at a school-sponsored event saying " Bong Hits 4 Jesus" as the Olympic torch was passing through Juneau, before arriving in
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
, Utah, for the
2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 (; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; ; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), were an international wi ...
. The board decided to suspend the student. The student then sued and won at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which stated that the board violated the student's
first amendment First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
right to
free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...
. On August 28, 2006, Starr filed a
writ of certiorari In law, ''certiorari'' is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. ''Certiorari'' comes from the name of a prerogative writ in England, issued by a superior court to direct that the record of ...
for a hearing with the Supreme Court. On June 21, 2007, in an opinion authored by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, the court ruled in favor of Starr's client, finding that "a principal may, consistent with the First Amendment, restrict student speech at a school event, when that speech is reasonably viewed as promoting illegal drug use."


''Blackwater Security Consulting v. Nordan'' (No. 06-857)

Starr represented Blackwater in a case involving the deaths of four unarmed civilians killed by Blackwater contractors in Fallujah, Iraq, in March 2004.


California Proposition 8 post-election lawsuits

On December 19, 2008, Proposition 8 supporters named Starr to represent them in post-election lawsuits to be heard by the
Supreme Court of California The Supreme Court of California is the Supreme court, highest and final court of appeals in the judiciary of California, courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly ...
. Opponents of the measure sought to overturn it as a violation of fundamental rights, while supporters sought to invalidate the 18,000
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
s performed in the state before Proposition 8 passed. Oral arguments took place on March 5, 2009, in San Francisco. Starr argued that "Prop. 8 was a modest measure that left the rights of same-sex couples undisturbed under California's domestic-partner laws and other statutes banning discrimination based on sexual orientation," to the agreement of most of the judges. The main issue that arose during the oral argument included the meaning of the word " inalienable," and to which extent this word goes when used in Article I of the Californian Constitution. Christopher Krueger of the
attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
's office said that inalienable rights may not be stripped away by the initiative process. Starr countered that "rights are important, but they don't go to structure ... rights are ultimately defined by the people." The court ultimately held that the measure was valid and effective, but would not be applied retroactively to marriages performed prior to its enactment. Starr was an advisory board member for the legal organization
Alliance Defending Freedom The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), formerly the Alliance Defense Fund, is an American conservative Christian legal advocacy group that works to expand Christian religious practices within public schools and in government. ADF is most known ...
.


Defense of Jeffrey Epstein

In 2007, Starr joined the legal team defending Palm Beach billionaire
Jeffrey Epstein Jeffrey Edward Epstein ( , ; January 20, 1953August 10, 2019) was an American financier and child sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional career as a teacher at the Dalton School, despite lacking a col ...
, who was accused of the statutory rape of numerous underage high school students. Epstein would later plea bargain to plead guilty to several charges of soliciting and trafficking of underage girls, serve 13 months on work release in a private wing of the Palm Beach jail, and register as a sex offender. Starr said he was "in the room" when then-US attorney Alex Acosta made the deal that yielded the plea bargain for Epstein and later described Acosta as "a person of complete integrity," adding that "everyone was satisfied" with the agreement.


Donald Trump impeachment trial

On January 16, 2020, Starr was announced as a member of then-President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
's legal team for his Senate impeachment trial. He argued before the Senate on Trump's behalf on January 27, 2020.
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
journalist Jeremy Stahl pointed out that as he was urging the Senate not to remove Trump as president, Starr contradicted various arguments he used in 1998 to justify Clinton's impeachment. In defending Trump, Starr also claimed he was wrong to have called for impeachment against Clinton for abuse of executive privilege and efforts to obstruct Congress and also stated that the House Judiciary Committee was right in 1998 to have rejected one of the planks for impeachment he had advocated for. He also invoked a 1999 ''
Hofstra Law Review The ''Hofstra Law Review'', an entirely student run organization, is the flagship law review of the Hofstra University School of Law. As of 2021, Hofstra Law Review ranks 68 out of 330 flagship law reviews by the influential Washington and Lee Law ...
'' article by Yale law professor Akhil Amar, who argued that the Clinton impeachment proved just how impeachment and removal causes "grave disruption" to a national election. Starr was called as a witness by Sen.
Ron Johnson Ronald Harold Johnson (born April 8, 1955) is an American businessman and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Wisconsin, a seat he has held since 2011. A Rep ...
on a senate hearing concerning
electoral fraud Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud, or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share o ...
amidst Trump's
attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election After Democratic Party (United States), Democratic nominee Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, Republican Party (United States), Republican nominee and then-incumbent president Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented ...
. When Trump was impeached for a second time in 2021, Starr condemned the impeachment as "dangerous" and "unconstitutional".


Baylor University

Starr was the Duane and Kelly Roberts Dean and Professor of Law at
Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...
, when on February 15, 2010, Baylor University announced that it would introduce Starr as its newest president. Starr became Baylor's 14th president, replacing
John Lilley John Lilley (born March 3, 1954) is an American guitarist, singing, singer, and songwriter best known for being a member of rock band the Hooters. Early life John Lilley learned to play the guitar at nine years old after he saw the Beatles per ...
who was ousted in mid‑2008. Starr was introduced as the new president on June 1, 2010. His inauguration was held on September 17, 2010, where Stephen L. Carter was the keynote speaker. Within his first two weeks in office, Starr was "leading the charge" to keep the university in the
Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida ...
for athletics. Starr was additionally named chancellor of Baylor in November 2013, a post that had been vacant since 2005. He became the first person to hold the positions of president and chancellor at Baylor at the same time. In September 2015, Baylor's Board of Regents initiated an external review of the university's response to reports of sexual violence to be conducted by the Pepper Hamilton law firm. Baylor had been accused of failing to respond to reports of rape and sexual assault filed by at least six female students from 2009 to 2016. Former football player Tevin Elliot was convicted of rape. Elliot is currently serving a 20-year sentence after his conviction in January 2014. Another student, Sam Ukwuachu, was convicted but has since had that conviction overturned and was retried, only to see it reinstated by the Texas Court of Appeals in 2018. Pepper Hamilton reported their findings to the regents on May 13, 2016, and on May 26, the regents announced Starr's removal as university president, effective May 31. The May 26, 2016, announcement of personnel changes by the Board of Regents said Starr was to have continued as Chancellor and also as a faculty member at Baylor Law School. Starr announced his resignation as Chancellor on June 1, effective immediately. He told an interviewer that he took that action "as a matter of conscience." He said he "willingly accepted responsibility" and "
The captain goes down with the ship "The captain goes down with the ship" is the Maritime transport, maritime tradition that a sea captain holds the ultimate responsibility for both the ship and everyone embarked on it, and in an emergency they will devote their time to save those ...
." He resigned his position as the Louise L. Morrison Chair of Constitutional Law in Baylor Law School on August 19, 2016.Judge Ken Starr
. ''Faculty & Staff Directory''. Baylor University. Retrieved August 7, 2016.


Death

In May 2022, Starr was admitted to Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center in
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, due to an unspecified illness. He died there from complications from surgery on September 13, 2022, at the age of 76.


Bibliography

* * *


See also

* George H. W. Bush Supreme Court candidates *
List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Chief Justice) Law clerks have assisted the justices of the United States Supreme Court in various capacities since the first one was hired by Justice Horace Gray in 1882. Each justice is permitted to have between three and four law clerks per Court term. The ...


References


Further reading

* Clinton, Bill (2005). '' My Life''. Vintage. . * Conason, Joe and Lyons, Gene (2000). '' The Hunting of the President.'' Thomas Dunne Books. . * Greenburg, Jan Crawford (2006). ''Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court''. Penguin Books, . * Schmidt, Susan and Weisskopf, Michael (2000). ''Truth at Any Cost: Ken Starr and the Unmaking of Bill Clinton''. HarperCollins Publishers. . * St. George, Donna (March 14, 2005)
"Starr, in New Role, Gives Hope to a Needy Death Row Inmate"
''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
''.


External links

*
Office of the President
at Baylor University * at the
U.S. Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of federal laws and the administration of justice. It is equi ...
* *
Cases argued before the Supreme Court
at Oyez.org
Lobbyist record (2001–2002)
at
OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks and publishes data on campaign finance and lobbying, including a revolving door database which documents the individuals who have worked in both the public sector an ...

2008 Interview with Kenneth Starr
on hossli.com
Report on the Death of Vincent W. Foster, Jr, by the Office of Independent Counsel in Re Madison Guaranty Savings and Loan Association
HATI Trust Digital Library, Universities of Michigan and Purdue. , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Starr, Kenneth 1946 births 2022 deaths Alliance Defending Freedom people American prosecutors Arkansas Democrats Arkansas Republicans Baylor University faculty Brown University alumni Duke University School of Law alumni Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni Harding University alumni Impeachment of Bill Clinton Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit People associated with Kirkland & Ellis Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States Deans of law schools in the United States Lawyers from Washington, D.C. Clinton–Lewinsky scandal People associated with Gibson Dunn People from Leon County, Texas People from Vernon, Texas Pepperdine University faculty Presidents of Baylor University Special prosecutors Texas Republicans Time Person of the Year United States court of appeals judges appointed by Ronald Reagan Solicitors general of the United States Whitewater controversy Members of the defense counsel for the first impeachment trial of Donald Trump Donald Trump attorneys