John L. Walker

John L. Walker

John L. Walker, defender of the Constitution, fighter for the underdog, and protector of animals died quietly on September 12, 2025, in Albuquerque, NM.

He was born in California on May 13, 1944. An Army brat, he woke up in a different state every three years, graduating from Palmer High School, Colorado Springs, in 1962. John honored a family tradition of military service as a cadet at West Point. There, he found novel ways to resist authority. In 1965 he wrote a formal complaint challenging the Army's requirement to attend weekly religious services, citing the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, his first "legal brief," long before the idea of law school planted itself in his head.

He continued to get into "good trouble" as an undergrad at the University of Denver. After getting arrested at an anti-war protest, he joined an ACLU suit that overturned the University's in loco parentis policy.

John earned his J.D. degree at UNM School of Law in 1972. He then worked in the University's fledgling Law Clinic, and in the Indian Law and Water Law programs. After a brief but productive time in private practice, he joined the NM State Public Defender's office, where he found his true passion: representing indigent people in criminal and civil rights matters. He had a particular love for Appeals and Habeas Corpus, and argued before both the New Mexico and the U.S. Supreme Courts.

John had a rich life outside the P.D.'s offices, too, often contributing his legal skills pro bono, usually to test established authority. He co-represented and advised plaintiffs and volunteers in a dispute with UNM Regents and Administration, helping to develop fair and responsive governance at its public radio station, KUNM-FM.

John's love of animals, especially cats, stoked an interest in Animal Law. He often advised rescuers and organizations. He helped strengthen existing animal welfare measures in Albuquerque. He cared for several colonies of "community cats" in the city, with Trap, Neuter, Return. He and his wife fed and saved cats around the world.

He took time to ski the black-diamond runs at Taos every winter, and spent summers trout fishing in the Rio Grande Gorge. He loved basketball, and like "everyone," he was a Lobo ("Woof woof woof!").

John was preceded in death by his parents, John R. Walker and Jeanne Lloyd Walker. He leaves behind his devoted wife, Chris Martín, whom he "defended against all enemies, foreign and domestic"; his beloved daughter Tacha Walker Vandeck; his cherished granddaughter Bailey Reese Vandeck; his stepmother Virginia (Ginnie) Walker; several cousins; and innumerable cats.

A Life Celebration will be held later (to be announced).

Memorial gifts may be made in his honor to Street Cat HUB www.streetcathub.org, Albuquerque Health Care for the Homeless www.abqhch.org, or the National Lawyers Guild www.nlg.org.