George B. Crane

Berkshire Eagle Staff

PITTSFIELD -- Pittsfield defense attorney George B. Crane, known for his love of the law, his work with recovering alcoholics, and the people that he touched during his long career, died Tuesday night following a brief illness. He was 79.

He passed away at his home on Howard Street surrounded by his five children, his daughter, Annette, said yesterday.

Crane, a Florence native who would have turned 80 in May, retired last August after medical problems made it difficult for him either to walk or stand. At the time of his retirement, Crane was the Berkshire Bar Association's longest-serving member, having marked his 50th anniversary as a member of that organization in May 2006.

He reached his 50th anniversary as a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association in October 2005. Crane received his law degree from Boston College Law School in 1955, the year he came to Pittsfield.

Despite his retirement, Crane never completely walked away from the profession he loved.

Recently retired Central Berkshire District Court Judge Alfred A. Barbalunga said Crane continued to advise other attorneys, passing on the knowledge that he had learned representing sexually dangerous persons, a task he began in 1990. He had been honored by the Committee for Public Counseling Services, which oversees the state's public defenders, for his work in that area.

A member of Alcoholics Anonymous, Crane was one of the founders of the SIOGA (Sobriety Is Our Greatest Asset) Club in Pittsfield, and worked with recovering alcoholics for 28 years.

"It's hard to believe that he's gone," Berkshire County District Attorney David F. Capeless said yesterday, "because he always gave you the impression that he would go on. He was always a part of things. He always seemed to be here.

"He was one of those people that, despite his accomplishments, you always saw him as a person," Capeless continued. "He was just a wonderful human being. That's the best thing you can say about a person."

The Berkshire Bar Association will hold a gathering in Crane's memory that is open to the public at 1 p.m. on Friday in Berkshire Superior Court. Crane's family will be present, current Bar Association President Michael J. McCarthy said. Veteran defense attorney Leonard H. Cohen will give the eulogy, a task Crane normally performed for association members who passed away.

Bar Association members will walk from the courthouse to St. Joseph's Church on North Street where Crane's wake will take place. Calling hours are from 3 to 8 p.m.

Barbalunga, who knew Crane for close to 40 years, will perform the eulogy at the funeral, which takes place at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday at St. Joseph's Church. Burial will follow at St. Joseph's Cemetery.

"George approached his final challenge with the same dignity and humor which were his trademarks," McCarthy said yesterday. "He was grateful for his blessings in life. He continued to endear himself to all of us with his wit, humility and self-deprecating humor right up until the end."

Crane was held in high esteem by all of his colleagues, who often sought him out for advice. A painting of Crane by Pittsfield Attorney John M. Kaufman hangs in a first-floor hallway of the Berkshire County Courthouse.

"He was a class act and will be terribly missed by everybody in the bar association," McCarthy said.

Born in Florence on May 12, 1927, Crane graduated from Northampton High School in 1944. He served in the U.S. Army as a staff sergeant with the 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, between 1945 and 1947, and was awarded both the Army of Occupation Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.

Following his military service, Crane attended St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., graduating in 1951.

The first criminal defendant Crane represented in his long career was charged with armed robbery. During an interview with The Eagle two years ago, Crane said he gravitated toward defense work because "that's where the action was."

"Once I got into it, I couldn't get out of it," he said.

Crane went on to handle 23 murder cases. He also represented the first Berkshire County defendant charged with marijuana possession, a case that occurred sometime in the 1960s. Crane said the charges were dropped when the "marijuana" turned out to be alfalfa.

He also served as a bar advocate in the Central Berkshire District Court. Due to his experience in assisting recovering alcoholics, Barbalunga once said that he often assigned Crane to defendants who had substance-abuse issues.

"He clearly influenced this judge," Barbalunga said yesterday.

Crane's own struggle with alcoholism affected his professional career. In 1980, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ordered a public censure of Crane for "serious misbehavior" in his representation of a client in 1974. He was required to report to the Board of Bar Overseers for two years.

According to Eagle files, the primary cause of Crane's misbehavior was reported to be "acute alcoholism." But the court also stated that Crane "has been rehabilitated physically," has recognized that he had a problem with alcohol, and "has resumed active practice and begun to re-establish himself in the community."

Seven years later, Crane was elected president of the Berkshire Bar, a position he held for two years. The Berkshire Bar presented Crane with its community service award last January for his work with recovering alcoholics. He also served as a member of the Pittsfield School Committee between 1986 and 1992.

"The important part of my alcoholism is that I recovered from it," Crane once said. "I work with alcoholics, and I like that work very much because I've been there myself. Alcoholism is a disease that can only be diagnosed by an alcoholic himself. To set that person on the right path is a very satisfying thing to do."

Crane was also a board member of Elder Services, and Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers, and was an emeritus trustee of the Berkshire Music School. Crane also served as chairman of the Mount Greylock Reservation Commission, an appointed state position, from 1959 until 1961. He was also known for his prowess as a gourmet cook.

Crane is survived by two sons, Joseph C. Crane of Bristol, R.I., and Patrick A. Crane of Chadds Ford, Pa.; and three daughters, Annette M. Crane of Brockport, N.Y., Mary E. Crane of Duvall, Wash., and Judith K. Crane of St. Louis.

He also leaves a brother, Robert P. Crane of Munich, Germany; two sisters, Elizabeth J. "Bette" Bogan of Hatfield, and Mary K. Crane of Florence; six grandchildren; three sons-in-law; and one daughter-in-law. He was predeceased by a son, Thomas P. Crane.

FUNERAL NOTICE -- The funeral for George B. Crane, who died Jan. 23, 2007, will be Saturday at 8:30 a.m., with a Liturgy of Christian Burial at St. Joseph's Church, celebrated by Monsignor Michael Shershanovich, pastor. Burial will follow in St. Joseph's Cemetery. Calling hours will be tomorrow from 3 to 8 p.m. at St. Joseph's Church. In lieu of flowers, if friends desire, donations in his memory may be made to the SIOGA Club in care of DEVANNY-CONDRON FUNERAL HOME, 40 Maplewood Ave., Pittsfield, MA 01201. Mr. Crane also leaves his grandchildren, Sarah Crane Newman, Miriam Crane Newman, Meredith Crane Roman, Brendan Crane Roman, Matthew A. Crane and Timothy J. Crane; his sons-in-law, David M. Newman, William G. Roman and Jim Stone; and his daughter-in-law, Carolyn Cardillo Crane.