Frank W. Dunham Jr.; Defended Terrorism Suspects' Rights

In a 2004 interview, Mr. Dunham called his work as public defender some of "the most exciting years I've had practicing law."

Mr. Dunham, a gregarious man with a self-effacing sense of humor, was born in Philadelphia and grew up in Arlington. He was a lifelong fan of the Washington Redskins, sitting in the same upper-deck seat at all home games.

"That was his only vice, those Redskins games," said his wife of 40 years, Elinor "Ellie" Dunham.

Mr. Dunham graduated from Virginia Tech in 1964 with a degree in naval architecture. He then attended law school at Catholic University, becoming the first law student to graduate first in his class while attending school at night.

After clerking for a federal judge, Mr. Dunham was an assistant U.S. attorney in Alexandria from 1971 to 1978, rising to the No. 2 position in the office. He then went into private practice as a white-collar defense lawyer in Arlington before taking the public defender's job.

Even as he worked long hours -- and then often labored into the night at his kitchen table, frequently listening to a Baltimore Orioles game -- Mr. Dunham never forgot his family.

"When I played baseball in college, he was at almost every game," said a son, John "Jody" Dunham. Only later did Jody Dunham learn that at the time, his father was representing former FBI agent Earl Edwin Pitts, who would later plead guilty to spying for Moscow. "You didn't even realize how busy he was in his professional life. You didn't feel it at all," Jody Dunham said.

In addition to his wife, of Alexandria, and his son, of Richmond, survivors include another son, Frank III "Chip" Dunham of Rockville; a brother; and a grandson.