Vernon B. Romney | |
|---|---|
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| 14th Attorney General of Utah | |
| In office January 6, 1969 – January 3, 1977 | |
| Governor | Cal Rampton Scott M. Matheson |
| Preceded by | Phil L. Hansen |
| Succeeded by | Robert B. Hansen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Vernon Bradford Romney (1924-04-27)April 27, 1924 Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. |
| Died | July 13, 2013(2013-07-13) (aged 89) Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6 |
| Relatives | Romney family |
| Alma mater | University of Utah (BS) George Washington University (JD) |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army |
| Unit | 96th Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Vernon Bradford Romney (April 27, 1924 – July 13, 2013) was an American lawyer who served as theattorney general of Utah from 1969 to 1977,[1] and the Republican candidate forGovernor of Utah in1976.[2] He was a member of theRomney family andthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Romney was born to Vernon Romney (1896–1976) and Anna Lois Bradford (1900–1957) in Salt Lake City, Utah, the oldest of eight children.[3] His father was an attorney and the chair of the Utah Republican party in 1944–50 and 1958–62.[4][5][6] He is a first cousin ofGeorge W. Romney and a first cousin once removed toMitt Romney.[3] Romney graduated in 1941 fromEast High School.[7]
Romney served inOkinawa andLeyte during World War II as an infantryman in the96th Infantry Division as a radio operator and an assistant to a Methodist chaplain.[8] He graduated with a BS in political science from the University of Utah and with a JD from George Washington University in 1953.[9][10]
Romney worked as an attorney for theFederal Communications Commission and on the staff of SenatorArthur V. Watkins, both while in Washington, DC.[10] He practiced law in Salt Lake City for fifteen years with the firms Romney and Nelson, and later Romney, Madsen, and Cummings.[10][11] From 1955-1959 he was an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Utah.[10] He was elected Attorney General of Utah in 1968,[11] and was reelected to this position in 1972.[2] He appeared before theU.S. Supreme Court in a case to obtain the mineral rights in theGreat Salt Lake for the State of Utah, helped to improve airline service to theSalt Lake International Airport, increased consumer protection in the state of Utah, and was involved in efforts to reform federalhabeas corpus laws.[10][11][12] After a failed bid for Governor of Utah in 1976, Romney was the Highland, Utah City Attorney from 1977 to 1992.[10]
Romney served a mission forthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) toBuffalo andNiagara Falls, New York from 1948 to 1950. He later served missions with his wife Pat toCharleston, West Virginia, from 1997 to 1998, andLa Jolla, California, from 2001 to 2002.[8]
Romney married Patricia (Pat) Pingree on December 29, 1951. In 1986, Pat was called as the national president ofLambda Delta Sigma, the LDS Church-sponsored sorority for college-age women.[13] They are the parents to six children.[3] They also have twenty-one grandchildren and, at the time of Romney's death, eleven great-grandchildren.[8] He died on July 13, 2013 in Salt Lake City, Utah at the age of 89.[14][15]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Nicholas L. Strike | Republican nominee forGovernor of Utah 1976 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Attorney General of Utah 1977–1981 | Succeeded by |