Longtime Baylor law professor known as 'the Godfather' dies at 82 - Waco Tribune-Herald
David Guinn, the master teacher affectionately called "the Godfather" for his more than five decades of training lawyers in his unique style at Baylor University Law School, died Thursday. He was 82.
Services for Guinn, who retired in 2020 as the Lyndon L. Olson and William A. Olson Professor of Local Government and Constitutional Law, will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 515 Columbus Ave.
Baylor presidents and administrators, including Guinn's longtime friend and mentor, Abner McCall, and former local and statewide officials such as former Texas governors Dolph Briscoe and Mark White sought Guinn's counsel on important legal issues, such as redistricting and constitutional concerns.
"David Guinn was a force of nature in the classroom and beyond," Baylor Law School Dean Brad Toben said in a statement from the university. "Blessed indeed was anyone who ever had the privilege of ever witnessing him speak, eloquently and with pointed passion, on the constitutional foundations of our great nation. David fought to explicate and defend the majesty of our constitutional structure, liberties, and processes before thousands of Baylor lawyers. His life’s work will stand as a testament to its sanctity as a bulwark of freedom and democracy."
Guinn taught constitutional law to thousands of aspiring Baylor lawyers. He inherited a great appreciation of history from his father, a history teacher, coach and superintendent in Cleburne, Baylor officials said in announcing Guinn's death.
Guinn is survived by a daughter, Catherine Dudley, and two sons, David Guinn Jr., and John Guinn, who both graduated from Baylor Law School. David Guinn Jr. said Thursday that the two most important things his father taught him were the importance of regular exercise to maintain a healthy mind, body and spirit, and the importance of preparation.
A Cleburne native, Guinn earned a football scholarship at Baylor before a knee injury ended his career. He changed his aspirations of becoming a doctor when the knee injury forced him to drop a biology class because he could not stand for the 3-hour lab, Baylor officials reported. On the advice of an adviser, Guinn enrolled in a political science course, which sparked Guinn's interest in law school.
David Guinn Jr. said his father started gaining a few pounds after his athletic career was cut short and he initially was diagnosed with diabetes. His doctor said he could control his condition with regular exercise, which Guinn took to heart and made a lifelong practice, his son said.
His father also taught him the importance of preparation in all aspects of life.
"He prepared for everything," Guinn Jr. said. "He prepared for every class as if he had never taught it before. He taught us that all you can do is try your best and that was acceptable. You could fail, but it wouldn't be for lack of preparation or trying. He taught us to be gritty and don't be afraid to do the hard work."
No only was Guinn his father, but he also was the "most tremendous lecturer I was ever fortunate to sit in front of," Guinn Jr. said.
"Of course there was the added tension of being his son in a room full of people who I was sure were smarter than me and under the pressure of Baylor Law School," Guinn Jr. said. "But I could ignore the fact that we were related and prepare for class and do the reading and go for the lectures because the cases and his lectures were so interesting. He was so genuinely prepared it would be doing him a disservice not to be equally so. He had the incredible ability to distill and pick apart the most difficult concepts and then translate that and explain it into applicable rule so the rest of us could go apply it and use it in our daily practices and lives."
After his injury, Guinn lost his athletic scholarship, but was awarded an academic scholarship established by Dr. W.P. Ball of Cleburne. After completing 90 hours of coursework, Guinn took advantage of Baylor’s then available “3-3” program, enrolling in law school in 1961 for both his senior year of undergraduate coursework and his first year of law school. He graduated from Baylor Law School in 1963.
Guinn worked for a law firm in Cleburne, at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Fort Worth and for a law firm in Arlington before he was admitted to the University of Michigan Law School in 1965. He obtained his LL.M. in international law in 1966 and started his 54-year teaching career at Baylor Law School.
source: https://wacotrib.com/news/local/longtime-baylor-law-professor-known-as-the-godfather-dies-at-82/article_a051977c-6fce-11ec-b26c-cbc38488b32d.html
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