John Havelock

John Eric Havelock (July 30, 1932 – August 31, 2021) was the Attorney General of Alaska from 1971 to 1973, a champion of individual privacy and Native American resource and subsistence rights. Born in Toronto, Canada, Havelock moved to the United States and attended first boarding school, then Harvard University for an undergraduate degree and a Juris Doctor degree before moving to Alaska. After working for the Alaska Department of Law, Havelock worked as staff at the White House before his appointment as Attorney General of Alaska in 1970.

During his term, Havelock wrote the state constitution's privacy amendment. He also supported or assisted in creating policies around the folliwng: the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, and traditional and subsistence fishing rights. After his term, Havelock returned to private practice, ran for political office, and taught at the University of Alaska Anchorage where he became a founding director of the University's Criminal Justice Center.

Early life Havelock was born in Toronto, Canada and emigrated to the United States when he was fourteen years old. He attended boarding school in the U.S. and then Harvard University, until he was drafted into the U.S. Army where he served as a military police investigator. After his discharge, he reentered Harvard, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1956 and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 1959, after which he moved to Alaska.

Career After four years at the Alaska Department of Law, he entered private practice. In 1967 Havelock was named a Fellow at the White House, working as a special assistant to Orville Freeman, the Secretary of Agriculture. He was appointed as the state's Attorney General by Governor Bill Egan in 1970, an office he held for three years. As Havelock described the process: "So I went back to the office and I wrote it the way it is now and went out in the hall, handed it to him, and that became the Privacy Amendment."

Havelock's privacy amendment became the foundation of Alaska Supreme Court opinions decriminalizing marijuana and upholding the right to abortion. Its original intent and implementation as written in 1972 was concerning the government's collection of Alaskans' personal data, but Havelock subsequently contended its coverage included abortion rights. "It is a broad idea. Privacy should apply to that situation, [...] A woman's consultation with her doctor — Jiminy Crickets. There's a limit to what you can do with that with a judicial proceeding."

In 1974, he ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House, losing to Alaska Native Willie Hensley in the Democratic primary. Ten years after that loss, he finished second in the All-party primary for U.S. Senate though he lost to Republican incumbent Ted Stevens in the general election.

In 1977, he became a professor at the University of Alaska Anchorage, where he taught justice and political science.

He co-founded and headed the law firm Havelock and Duffy until his retirement in 2019.

Shortly before he died, Havelock reflected on his life and legacy. He said, from a hospital bed in his home, "I am a short-timer, you understand. [...] Well, I'm happy about it. I've had a good, strong life, full of accomplishments, and I don't need anything else."

Personal life He married several times, the last being May 17, 2008 to Mona (Pitts) Havelock who became his widow. They had a "shared family" of five children and seven grandchildren.