Cornell, Julien D., 1910-

Julien Cornell (1910-1994) was educated at Swarthmore and Yale Law School (Law 1993). A member of the Society of Friends, he defended conscientious objectors during World War II and served as the defense counsel for Pound during the initial stages of his treason trial and competency hearing. Cornell published several works, including The Trial of Ezra Pound (1966).

Julien Cornell was born in Brooklyn in 1910 and graduated from Swarthmore College in 1930. He received his law degree from Yale Law School in 1933 and opened a practice in Manhattan shortly thereafter.

A member of the Society of Friends, Cornell had a strong interest in civil liberties law, and during World War II he handled many cases for conscientious objectors to the draft. He was Counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union National Lawyers National Committee on Conscientious Objection (ACLU-NCCO) and served as chair of the Lawyers Committee of the Metropolitan Board for Conscientious Objectors. During this time, Cornell published The Conscientious Objector and the Law (1943), and Conscience and the State (1945), and served as an expert consultant on the issue of conscientious objection and assignment to alternate service in the CPS (Civilian Public Service).

In November 1945, his friend James Laughlin of New Directions Press contacted him and asked him if he would be willing to represent Ezra Pound, who had been arrested in Italy and charged with treason for broadcasts he made over Rome Radio in 1942 and 1943. Public opinion was strongly against Pound, but Cornell agreed, as he "always enjoyed fighting for the underdog" and did not consider that the speeches met the American legal standard for treason. After meeting with Pound, however, and consulting with several of his old friends, Cornell resolved to enter a plea of insanity for his client. Hearings were held and expert witnesses retained, and on February 13, 1946, a jury impanelled by Judge Bolitha Laws returned a verdict of "unsound mind." While Cornell had hoped to secure Pound's release on bail once he had been adjudged insane, Pound was remanded to Federal custody at St. Elizabeth's Federal Hospital for the Insane in Washington, D.C., where he remained until August 1958.

Cornell moved his law practice to Central Valley, New Jersey in 1950, but continued to offer legal and strategic advice to Pound and his representatives. He was the author of New World Primer (1947), which advocated a world federal government and was published by Laughlin's New Directions Press; The Trial of Ezra Pound (1966), which reproduced a selection of the legal documents relating to the Pound case; and A Tale of Treasure Trove (1977), a collection of essays that included "The Last Years of Ezra Pound," a restatement of Cornell's personal belief in Pound's insanity.

Julien Cornell married Virginia Scratton in 1932; the couple had two sons and two daughters, all of whom survived him. After his retirement from active practice, he traveled extensively in Europe and continued to pursue his interests in local history and home winemaking. Cornell died in Goshen, New York, on December 2, 1994.