Attorney’s honesty, integrity recalled

A Lawrence man who prosecuted some of the state’s most heinous murderers, including one that led to the reinstatement of the death penalty, is being remembered in the days after his death as a family man and a highly respected attorney.

The best word to describe Assistant Kansas Atty. Gen. John K. Bork is “integrity,” said Andy Bauch, who worked with him during the last four years.

“He had a reputation of being very honest,” Bauch said. “He’d say that all you really have as a lawyer is your integrity, and if you give that up you don’t have anything else.”

Bork, 61, died Monday at Lawrence Memorial Hospital. He was married to Douglas County District Court Judge Jean Shepherd and had three sons.

Bork went to work in the attorney general’s office in 1985 and for a few years in the 1990s served as deputy attorney general in charge of the criminal division.

Bork often worked with local county prosecutors on cases, including the prosecution of Donald Gideon, who raped and murdered Pittsburg State University student Stephanie Schmidt in 1993. Gideon was on parole for another rape conviction. The case led the Kansas Legislature to reinstate the death penalty.

In 1996, Bork assisted Crawford County with the prosecution of Gary Kleypas, who raped and murdered Carrie Williams, another college student. Kleypas was on parole for a murder in another state. The Kleypas case became the state’s first death penalty case since it was reinstated.

At the conclusion of the Kleypas case, Bork, along with Crawford County Atty. Barry Disney, was named Kansas Prosecutor of the Year for 1997.

But Bork often traveled to the far ends of the state to prosecute cases. He had the respect of law enforcement officers, judges and attorneys, said Bob Blecha, assistant director of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

“Among all of the agents here that have ever worked with him, he was probably the most respected attorney and prosecutor,” Blecha said.

Bauch, Bork’s co-worker, agreed Bork was highly respected.

“Going somewhere with him was really amazing,” Bauch said. “You sort of had instant credibility because you were with him.”

Bork won people over with his personality as well as his abilities in the courtroom, said Al Walczak, who handled capital murder cases with him at the attorney general’s office.

“John was an outstanding litigator and attorney, but, more importantly, he was a very good person and a gentleman,” said Walczak, now deputy discipline administrator with the Kansas Office of Disciplinary Administration. “He was a model husband and a father.”

Bauch agreed.

“He really made an impact on a lot of people’s lives,” he said. “He was just an amazing, amazing guy.”