Lucio Marsella decided to study law after being inspired by the biography of a famous Canadian lawyer, W. Glen How

[Guest Kurt]

From Rome to Reno: Italian attorney whose wife has area ties visits local court, judge.

Reno County District Judge Tim Chambers never had an attorney from Italy in his courtroom.

However, last week as he was finishing up the day’s hearing schedule, he noticed an impeccably dressed man sitting in the back of the room.

Chambers asked if he was a defendant or a party to a case.

 

 

“No,” Lucio Marsella said in a very strong Italian accent. “I’m just visiting.”

Marsella, a Roman attorney, was in town for several weeks visiting his wife Erin’s family in rural Reno County.

Erin Seiders Marsella, who grew up in Sylvia, met Lucio in 2012 while she was vacationing in Rome. They were introduced through a friend of Lucio’s who worked at the hotel where Erin was a guest. They were married last year in Hutchinson.

While The Cosmosphere and Strataca figure more prominently than the courthouse on the must-see list for visitors to the area, Marsella made two trips to the Reno County seat of government before leaving Hutchinson Tuesday.

Chambers recalled a judge visiting from San Francisco sitting in his courtroom, but in his 16 years on the bench, this was a first to have a visitor from outside the country.

Marsella and Chambers began talking, and the two hit it off so well that the next time Chambers is in Rome he plans to visit Marsella. During their discussions, the visitor mentioned he really wanted to see a jury trial. He was ready to sit in on one, but the trial was postponed after an attorney was injured.

It was apparent that Marsella was really disappointed, Chambers said. The men had the opportunity to visit on two occasions, exchanging information about their court systems.

“He explained they don’t have juries in Italy, they have professional judges,” Chambers said. The severity of a trial determines the number of judges. For example, if it’s a murder case, there will be up to five judges.

Chambers was also surprised to learn that Marsella considered U.S. judges much more formal than the judges in Italy. For example, in Rome on civil cases judges don’t wear robes.

Meanwhile, Marsella, who specializes in criminal medical malpractice and child custody cases, said he appreciated how quickly the wheels of justice seemed to spin in the Reno County court system.

Growing up in Italy, Marsella formed a romantic image of the American west.

 

“My love of westerns developed when I was a child and my father introduced me to John Wayne and Clint Eastwood movies and to a popular comic in Italy, ‘Tex Willer,’ who pictures the adventures of a lawman in the southwest during the western times,” Marsella said.

He decided to study law after being inspired by the biography of a famous Canadian lawyer, W. Glen How, best known for his work on behalf of Jehovah’s Witnesses as a fighter for religious freedom. In 1997, How’s work earned him the Award for Courageous Advocacy from the American College of Trial Lawyers. He was the only Canadian to receive the award.

How’s influence is apparent in Marsella’s practice, which includes battles for the rights of parents to share their religious beliefs with their children as well as cases dealing with the rights of adult patients to determine their medical treatment according to their beliefs.

After three weeks in Kansas, which included a trip to Dodge City’s Boot Hill and Wichita’s Cowtown, the Marsellas returned to Rome on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Erin relishes her life in Rome. When they can, she and Lucio are exploring the country. She especially enjoys Tuscany and the beaches.

“It’s a beautiful land with fascinating castles and ruins,” Erin said.

Kathy Hanks

“The Battle Is Not Yours, but God’s”AS TOLD BY W. GLEN HOW