Charles Marsland (1923-2007) was a Honolulu attorney who served as the first elected

Prosecuting Attorney of Honolulu The Prosecuting Attorney of Honolulu is one of only two countywide elected positions in the City & County of Honolulu Honolulu County (officially known as the City and County of Honolulu, formerly Oahu County) is a consolidated city–county ...

from 1981 to 1988. He is best known for his aggressive prosecution of the Hawaiian Mob during the mid 1980s, which took place after the murder of his son, which was allegedly connected to organized crime.

Early life and education

Marsland, the grandson of Norwegian immigrants to Hawaii, was born on April 11, 1923. His father, Charles F. Marsland Sr., was a deep-sea diver and his mother Sadie was a schoolteacher. Marsland attended the prestigious

Punahou School Punahou School (known as Oahu College until 1934) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory school in Honolulu, Hawaii. More than 3,700 students attend the school from kindergarten through twelfth grade, 12th grade. Protestant missionar ...

and, upon graduation, attended Tufts College in

Medford, Massachusetts Medford is a city northwest of downtown Boston on the Mystic River in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, Medford's population was 59,659. It is home to Tufts University, which has its campus alo ...

. While enrolled, he joined the US Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps as a rifleman and was subsequently deployed to fight in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II. As a Naval commander, Marsland fought in the Philippines and, after the war, remained in the Navy as a prison administration officer at Pearl Harbor. Following his discharge from the Navy, he returned to Tufts and graduated with his bachelor's degree in 1949, then enrolled at

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

's school of law in Boston.

Career

Assistant attorney general in Massachusetts (1953 - 1958)

His first job as a prosecutor was working as an assistant

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

in 1953, serving in the office of then- Massachusetts Attorney General George Fingold. As an assistant attorney general, Marsland prosecuted cases involving gambling, organized crime, and murder.

Campaign for Plymouth County district attorney (1958)

In 1958, Marsland resigned from the attorney generals' office and entered private practice. He attempted to run for his first elected office as Plymouth County

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

, challenging incumbent John Wheatley. However, he fell short in the Republican primary, losing with 8,463 votes to 13,569 votes. Wheatley went on to win re-election unopposed.

Deputy Corporation Counsel in Honolulu (1967 - 1979)

Marsland left Boston following his divorce and moved back to Honolulu in 1967. His first job in Hawaii was as a deputy corporation counsel, handling civil litigation for the city of Honolulu. His work involved compliance with civil rights law, pursuing civil actions on behalf of the city, and defending police officers accused of brutality. During this period of his career, he developed a good rapport with the Honolulu Police Department which he carried with him to his next job as county prosecutor.

Prosecuting Attorney in Honolulu (1980 - 1988)

After joining the prosecutors' office, he briefly led a unit focused on the prosecution of

career criminals A habitual offender, repeat offender, or career criminal is a person convicted of a crime who was previously convicted of crimes. Various state and jurisdictions may have laws targeting habitual offenders, and specifically providing for enhanced ...

. After being fired from the office, Marsland ran for and won the inaugural 1980 election, becoming the first elected

. After being elected, he was credited with doubling the size of the prosecutors' office and aggressively targeting organized crime.

Personal life

Marsland married a television presenter named Jayne Watts in Boston in 1953. With her, he had two children - Charles F. Marsland Jr. (more commonly known as "Chuckers") (born in 1955) and Laurie Jane Marsland (born in 1957). In 1967, Marsland and his wife separated. Marsland gained sole custody of his son Chuckers and returned to Hawaii. Later, he formed a relationship with an interior designer named Polly Grigg, who remained his domestic partner until his death in 2007.

Death

Marsland died at his Portlock home on April 11, 2007. In his honor, his family trust donated $3 million to the Shriners Hospital for

children A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

in Honolulu. This amount was the largest donation to the Shriners in Honolulu from a single individual.

References

External links

City & County of Honolulu

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsland, Charles Government of Honolulu District attorneys in Hawaii 1923 births 2007 deaths American people of Norwegian descent United States Navy personnel of World War II Hawaii lawyers Massachusetts lawyers County officials in Hawaii Hawaii Republicans Tufts University alumni Northeastern University School of Law alumni Punahou School alumni 20th-century American lawyers