Harry Pregerson
- Category : 1923-births
- Type : GE
- Profile : 5/1 - Heretical / Investigator
- Definition : Triple Split
- Incarnation Cross : LAX The Clarion 2
Biography
American lawyer and judge, a United States Circuit Judge regarded as one of the judiciary's most liberal judges, attracting both praise and criticism for his insistence on placing his conscience above court precedent. He was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit by President Jimmy Carter in 1979.
In 1992, Pregerson halted the execution of Robert Alton Harris after the prisoner had been strapped into the gas chamber. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the execution to proceed two hours later. In 2003, Pregerson refused to follow Supreme Court precedent regarding California's three-strikes law. Pregerson would continue dissenting whenever the court imposed that law.
Pregerson was the child of Ukrainian Jewish immigrants. His wife, Bernardine, was a microbiologist. Pregerson's son, Dean Pregerson, is a federal district judge for the United States District Court for the Central District of California. His daughter, Katie Rodan, is a dermatologist and cofounder of a skin-care brand. Pregerson died in Los Angeles on 25 November 2017 at age 94 from respiratory problems.