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Education University of Houston Law Center | ||
Richard "Racehorse" Haynes (born April 3, 1927) is a Texas criminal defense attorney. TIME magazine once referred to him as one of the top six criminal lawyers in America. He studied law at Southern Methodist University, went on to the University of Houston, and graduated with honors.
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Military record
Richard Haynes served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. He participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima at the age of seventeen. In that battle, U.S. Marines hit the beach from small landing crafts under heavy enemy fire. While on the beach and firing at the Japanese, Haynes noticed a fellow Marine still in the water and wounded. Haynes left his position on the beach while under heavy enemy machine gun, mortar and artillery fire, went back into the water, picked up the wounded Marine, and brought him to a safer position on the beach where a Navy Corpsman came to the Marine's aid, saving his life. Haynes was decorated with a medal for his heroic actions during the battle.
Law practice
A native of Houston, Texas, he graduated from the University of Houston Law Center in 1956, and was admitted to the State Bar of Texas on April 23, 1956. He has been involved in landmark cases such as The State of Texas v. John Hill (a basis for the book Blood and Money), and the notorious T. Cullen Davis murder and later solicitation of murder trials in Fort Worth, Texas, both of which ended in acquittals. He also represented Morganna, a.k.a. "The Kissing Bandit" and Vickie Daniel, who was the wife of Price Daniel Jr..
At a late 1970s American Bar Association seminar in New York, Mr. Haynes explained how to plead in the alternative:
Say you sue me because you say my dog bit you. Well, now this is my defense:
Haynes resides in and practices law in Houston.