Darrow K. Soll

Darrow K. Soll, 39 One of Phoenix's most prominent young criminal defense attorneys passed away at his residence on Friday Oct. 7, 2005. He is survived by his mother, Margo K. Daley Soll; his fiancée, Kip Rustenburg, his brothers and sisters: Wade L. Soll II, Philip Brookover, Robert Goodman, Kevin Goodman, Margo Soll Weiss, Markerry Soll Goad, Terry Soll Young, Glenda Soll Scalf, Brenda Soll Silva, Jhanel Soll Al Samham, Cindy Goodman Lowe, and Karen Nelson; his aunt, Kaye Soll Stewart; his uncle, Michael A. Daley; forty four nieces and nephews; and thirty eight great nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father: Dr. Wade L. Soll and his sister Melody Goodman Cole. Darrow Soll was born May 25, 1966 in Glendale, AZ. He attended both Melvin E Sine Elementary School and Apollo High School in Glendale. Darrow served his country in the US Army Ranger Battalion of the 82nd Airborne Division, where he was member of a reconnaissance section and an anti-tank platoon, with an emphasis on airborne infiltration and infantry operations. Darrow's military awards include: Expert Infantry Badge; Jungle Expert Badge; Airborne Wings, Army Achievement Medal. After Military service, Darrow returned home to Arizona and went on to graduate from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Russian Language where he earned the Distinguished Intern Award and made the Dean's List. Darrow also studied at the Norwich University School of Russian where he earned his Russian Studies Certificate, was Distinguished Honor Graduate, and recipient of the A.S. Pushkin Award for Highest Academic Achievement. He studied law at Saint Louis and at the University of Arizona College of Law where was also on the Dean's List and graduated with honors. Darrow was Articles Editor and Staff Writer for the Arizona Law Review and was a University of Arizona co-member of the 1st place Jenkins Cup winning team in the American College of Trial Lawyers Closing Argument Competition. As an attorney Darrow was a State Bar of Arizona Certified Criminal Specialist who received Martindale Hubbell's highest rating of AV. He was a member of the State Bar of Arizona, Maricopa County Bar Association, American Bar Association, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice. Over the course of his career, Darrow pursued justice through with the law firm of O'Conner Cavanaugh, the Arizona Attorney General's Office, the Pima County Public Defender's Office, the Maricopa County Public Defender's Office, and the local office of Quarles & Brady, Streich Lang. Darrow Soll's professional presentations and teachings include: Speaker and panelist to the Arizona State Bar Criminal Law Section, continuing faculty to Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice, and Maricopa County Public Defender's Office; guest lecturer and adjunct professor, James Rogers, University of Arizona College of Law; presentation, "power of the Pen" (motion writing strategies) Criminal Justice Panel. Included among his publications are Mending Arizona's Constitutional Fences, Arizona Attorney and Once the Music Has Stopped: Real World Consequences to A Felony Conviction which was co-authored with April Wynne. Darrow Soll's practice was diverse and included corporations, public officials, law enforcement, professional athletes, and celebrities, but he is probably best known in the public eye for matters involving controversial heavy weight champion Mike Tyson, a client since 1998. Darrow was a legal consultant for television networks and was well known for his political and legal debates on MSNBC and CNN. Darrow was a staunch defender of both the US Constitution and especially the Arizona Constitution. He was always most proud of his arguments before the Arizona Supreme Court and every time an otherwise obvious guilty conviction was preempted and reversed through aggressive investigation and great lawyering. The events in Darrow's life like his influence on the lives of those around him were always extraordinary and often full of life changing extremes. He lived large and endured the associated maladies from being shot through the chest at age 5 to his parachute and motorcycle mishaps that left him with a limp. As a child Darrow developed a deep sense of principal that was all his own, as an adult he came to associate with the values, principles, and integrity of John and Robert Kennedy as well as Harry Truman. Darrow loved with great zeal and each relationship and friendship was as unique as it was intense. Darrow held himself to a higher standard and challenged the legal community and all those around him to do likewise. He supported, encouraged, and pushed friends, family, colleagues, and even adversaries to fulfill and even surpass their potential, and though a few faltered all others flourished and became better than they knew they could be. To the innocent he was the warrior of justice; to the downtrodden he was the archangel of compassion. Darrow will be remembered always for his awesome sense of humor and irony, and as Adventurer, Advocate, Best Friend, and most notably: UNCLE. Services will be held at 10am on Friday, October 14, 2005 at The Wrigley Mansion, 2501 E. Telawa Trail, Phoenix, AZ. Interment to follow at Beth Israel Cemetery. Arrangements by Menke Funeral Home. Contributions in memory of Darrow K. Soll may be made to the "Darrow K. Soll Foundation" at the Arizona Community Foundation, 2201 East Camelback Road Suite 202, Phoenix, AZ 85016