Topic: Kansas District Court
Interview of John Carlin, June 14, 2019
Interviewed by H. Edward (Ed) Flentje
This 2019 oral history interview focused on the experiences of John Carlin during his legislative career in the House of Representative from 1971-1978 where he led his caucus to achieve the majority party status, and his becoming only the second Democratic House speaker in the 20th Century. The interview contains anecdotes about his experiences in 4-H which he believed developed his leadership skills as well as the issues he embraced during his terms in the House. Carlin also candidly discussed the challenges he faced in working to overturn a veto of a governor of his party. Issues covered in this Show Moreinterview included prisons, the death penalty, reorganizing government, due process for teachers, court unification, centralization of the welfare system at the state level and the politics of roads and transportation. Carlin pointed to livestock judging as training for making decisions. Carlin found that learning to make fast, accurate decisions contributed to his political success.
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Transcripts of two earlier interviews of Carlin, conducted in 2004 and 2008 by professors Bob Beatty and Mark Peterson of Washburn University, are available on this site. Interviews of former Kansas governors conducted by Dr. Bob Beatty of Washburn University during the early decades of the 21st Century provide a view of the lives, political philosophies, and governing styles of governors who led Kansas from the late 20th to the early 21st Century. Beatty generously granted the Kansas Oral History Project (KOHP) permission to house the transcripts of these interviews of former governors John Anderson, William Avery, John Carlin, Bill Graves, Mike Hayden, Mark Parkinson, and Kathleen Sebelius. These interviews are a significant addition to the Kansas Governors Collection, and the KOHP Board is grateful to Dr. Beatty for making the transcripts available for posting here. A 2026 interview of Carlin focusing on his tenure as Archivist of the United States is also available on this site. Show Less
Interview of Robert (Bob) Frey, August 2, 2019
Interviewed by Jim McLean
Robert Frey had considerable impact on the legal system after he arrived in 1975. Court unification had passed as a constitutional amendment; now the legislature had to implement it. Early in his legislative career Frey took on some controversial issues, such as the hearings he held in the House Judiciary committee on the Posse Comitatus to ban paramilitary training and legislation ensuring every county had a judge. This interview does not deal with the plethora of issues which originated in the House Judiciary committee under Frey's leadership, such as codification of the sexual crimes including marital rape, Show Morebut it does reveal his philosophy about the law, the courts and judges. The interview also provides a glimpse into the rise of the conservative influence from a group know as "the Cowboys." The interview concludes with a discussion of activities on the Board of Tax Appeals. Show Less
Interview of Ed Larson, November 4, 2022
Interviewed by Richard Ross
This interview of longtime Kansas lawyer and jurist, the Honorable Ed Larson, gives a clear understanding of the workings of both Kansas Court of Appeals and the Kansas Supreme Court. Joining the appellate court in 1987 as a general practice lawyer exposed him to many more criminal cases than he had seen in his practice in Hays. He liked the court's practice of traveling around the state for hearings. Larson believed that solving the problems of individuals was the most important work they did, although there were many high-profile cases such as the sale of Blue Cross Show MoreBlue Shield to an out-state company. Larson is a supporter of merit selection for judges and credits the availability of the retirement system for judges with allowing judges to retire with dignity and benefits. Show Less
Interview of Howard Schwartz, April 25, 2023
Interviewed by Richard Walker
Howard Schwartz credits Wilt Chamberlain for encouraging him to leave Philadelphia and come to Kansas to college. Then Jim James asked him to set up a system to manage personnel in 110 courts located in the state's 105 counties. Schwartz spent the next 32 years managing change within the Kansas courts as the Judicial Administrator. This oral history interview covers court unification, the management of court dockets, the creation of child support guidelines, and the evolving relationships among courts and judges over how the system is administered. Schwartz developed a special friendship with Justice Kay McFarland Show Morewho asked him and his wife, Elaine to assist with the disposition of her estate. Schwartz wrote an article for the Kansas Bar Association publication about Chief Justice McFarland which is also available for download. Show Less