John Burris

John Leonard Burris, born on May 8, 1945, is an American civil rights attorney based in Oakland, California. He is well-known for helping people who have faced unfair treatment by police. His law firm works on many types of cases, including jobs, defending people accused of crimes, and helping with injuries or problems with landlords.

Burris became very famous when he helped Rodney King in a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department. Because of his work, Rodney King received a large amount of money to make up for what happened to him.

Over the years, Burris has also helped many other famous people, such as Tupac Shakur, Latrell Sprewell, Gary Payton, Keyshawn Johnson, and Barry Bonds. His work has made a big difference in standing up for people’s rights and making sure everyone is treated fairly.

Early life and education

John Burris was born in May 1945 in Vallejo, California. He finished school at Vallejo High School in 1963. He went to Solano Community College and later got a degree in accounting from Golden Gate University. He earned an MBA from UC Berkeley Graduate School of Business in 1970 and a law degree from UC Berkeley School of Law in 1973. After law school, he worked at the Chicago law firm Jenner & Block and joined the California Bar in 1976.

Career

John Burris is a lawyer who has worked on many important cases involving fairness and safety. He began his work in 1979 by looking into a sad case where a young teenager named Melvin Black passed away. His book, Blue vs. Black, talks about unfair treatment by police toward African-Americans.

Burris has helped many people in big lawsuits. He helped Rodney King win a case against the police and received a large amount of money for him. He also worked on cases where police were found doing wrong things, like planting evidence on people. Burris has stood up for families when their loved ones were hurt or treated unfairly by police officers. His work has brought attention to important issues and helped change how some police departments operate.

Personal life

John Burris is married to Cheryl Amana-Burris, who is a law professor at North Carolina Central University. They live in Oakland Hills, Oakland, California.

Awards and honors

John Burris has been recognized with several important honors. He was inducted into the National Bar Association Hall of Fame in 2017. He has been involved with the moot court trial attorney program at Stanford University since 1996 and with the Trial Advocacy Program at Hastings College of Law since 1980. He has served as a member of the Oakland Municipal Court and held various leadership roles in legal associations.

Recently, he gave presentations at Chapman University Law School, the National Bar Association seminar, and the Ninth Circuit Annual Conference. He also spoke on a podcast about fairness in policing and gave a keynote speech at the Empire National Mock Trials Honors in San Francisco.