Harold “Hank” Naughton ’82

From the summer 2006 issue of Assumption Magazine:

A Clinton lawyer and state representative for the 12th Worcester District, Harold “Hank” Naughton ’82 is committed to serving his clients, his district, and most importantly, his country. He returned in April from an eight-month active duty stint in Iraq and Kuwait. Hank was featured in a Worcester Telegram & Gazette article on May 21 and interviewed on Boston’s Fox-TV affiliate on May 22.

Hank joined the U.S. Army Reserves in 2003 as a judge advocate general, receiving a waiver for his 42 years of age at the time. He performed legal services for two years before volunteering six-months of active duty last September. At 42, he was the oldest recruit—by 17 years—in a two-week training program at Fort Bliss in Texas.

He worked on court-martials and contracts out of a tent in Kuwait, where the temperature hovered around 90 degrees. Hank was promoted from Lieutenant to Captain in Kuwait, then transferred to Iraq. There he investigated cases against foreign insurgents, examining if the detainees should continue to be held in prison. He and other lawyers presented the cases to an Iraqi tribunal. He spent four months in Baghdad, traveling in a convoy through the city streets to reach where he worked each day, processing about 125 cases per week. The noise from mortar rounds and nearby gunfire was constant.

Since returning home, he has had a hard time getting used to the quiet and said, “You appreciate even more, every day, what we have back here.” Hank resides in Clinton with his wife, Ellen, and their four children.

Last updated 12/18/07