My Demons Were Real

Joseph Albert Calamia began his career as a criminal defense attorney in El Paso, Texas, in 1949. He was a crusader for justice, considered to be akin to Don Quixote. But he disagreed, "The big difference is that my demons were real." His demons were the institutionalized practices that favored expediency over the rights of individuals. A World War II veteran, Calamia grew up in El Paso, Texas in a world that expected those of Mexican descent to remain inferior. Over the course of his career, Calamia successfully challenged attacks against civil liberties, including police undercover tactics and the constitutionality of searches and seizures in drug, immigration, and other cases. Published as part of Hispanic Civil Rights Series, this book documents the efforts of a man who lived to protect the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.