Dick Nelson

Dick Nelson grew up in Sarasota, Florida, and is a 1960 graduate of Sarasota High School. After receiving three appointments to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, he graduated in 1964 with a double major in electrical engineering and foreign languages. Certified by the Navy Department as a Spanish language translator/interpreter, Dick was one of two Midshipmen selected for a special politico-military liaison assignment with the Peruvian Navy and the American Embassy in Peru. He was offered a teaching position on the Naval Academy faculty in the Foreign Languages Department, but declined in order to pursue Navy flight training. Following training as a Naval Aviator, he served two combat tours in Vietnam as a carrier-based fighter pilot in the F-8E Crusader, receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross, 13 Air Medals, the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V", the Navy Unit Citation, the Vietnamese Gallantry Cross with Star, and other decorations. He flew over 200 combat missions and accrued approximately 300 carrier landings. He married Janet Lee Theurer, an American Airlines flight attendant, in 1969. Dick was employed by Continental Airlines as a commercial pilot after leaving active duty. He served concurrently as a labor negotiator for the Air Line Pilots Association, followed by assignments as a special technology projects manager for Continental in flight operations. He left Continental in 1984 to attend the UCLA School of Law, where he graduated in 1987. After working as a litigation attorney for two large law firms in Los Angeles, Dick started his own specialty litigation firm in Walnut Creek, California. He is admitted to the Bars of California, Colorado and the District of Columbia. He is also admitted to six federal courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Dick has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in many high-value cases in state and federal trial and appellate courts. He has litigated cases in such areas as employment law, environmental pollution, insurance coverage, commercial contracts, intellectual property, antitrust, and unfair competition. In representing large companies and senior executives in California, he was widely recognized for his expertise in negotiating, drafting and litigating complex commercial contracts. In addition to his litigation practice, he was both a private and court-appointed arbitrator and mediator. Dick retired from his law practice in 2005 and worked temporarily for the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security in Miami as a Political Asylum Officer. He moved to Punta Gorda, where he now resides with Janet, seeking new adventures on his boats Avenger and Liberty. Dick's first book, "The Contrail Chronicles," is the story of his father's service as a fighter pilot in WWII, and his own experiences in the air war over Vietnam. His second book, "The Trojan Horse Conspiracy," is a novel of suspenseful espionage, brutal assassinations, and daring rescues. Both books have received excellent reviews, which are available on the books' web pages on amazon.com.