G. Bushnell, 77; Vocal ABA Leader

George E. Bushnell Jr., a former president of the American Bar Assn. whose polished pedigree belied a wickedly blunt take on drugs, race relations and the law, died of kidney failure Wednesday at a hospital in Grosse Pointe, Mich. He was 77.

Bushnell, the son of a Michigan Supreme Court chief justice, held leadership posts in the ABA, the largest voluntary legal association in the country, and was its president in 1994 and 1995.

Outwardly conservative in appearance, well-tailored, with soft white hair, Bushnell could voice surprising opinions, including heavy criticism of lawmakers and calls for the legalization of all drugs. In a Washington Post profile, a colleague described him as a “liberal curmudgeon.”

Bushnell’s comments were peppered with borderline obscenities, and he took the unusual tack of granting an interview to Rolling Stone magazine to disclose his personal views about drug laws. He said federally regulating marijuana and crack cocaine would reduce profits for street sellers and crime by users.

One member of the ABA governing board said Bushnell’s drug statements were “damaging the credibility of lawyers.” Bushnell said that he was largely unconcerned with the image of the profession and that lawyers should stand “at the forefront of social change.”

Several members of the House of Representatives called for his resignation over Bushnell’s vulgar characterization of those opposed to federal funding of the Legal Services Corp., which aids the poor.

Despite such polarizing remarks, he often worked the machinery of the ABA to find consensus on issues such as broadening gun-control laws. Colleagues said he seldom took credit for his successes, preferring to recognize others or to credit the larger debate for change.

After his ABA term ended, Bushnell returned to his native Detroit to practice law. He remained active in the ABA House of Delegates, the organization’s policy-making body, and continued to speak out when he felt that his peers were being deferential to political correctness.

George Edward Bushnell was a 1948 graduate of Amherst College and a 1951 graduate of the University of Michigan law school. He served in the Army during World War II and saw combat in the Korean War. He was a senior partner in the Detroit law firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone before starting his own firm in 1977. At his death, Bushnell was counsel to Roy, Shecter & Vocht in the Detroit suburb of Bloomfield Hills.

In the 1960s, he was a board member of the Detroit chapter of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People and helped start an urban coalition to rebuild the city after race riots.

He also was a former president of the National Conference of Bar Presidents and the Assn. of Trial Attorneys of America.

Survivors include three children and eight grandchildren.