Longtime deputy prosecutor retires after fighting for justice for 1000s in Tri-Cities

When Terry Bloor graduated from law school, he never expected to handle criminal cases.

He soon found he enjoyed the structure and variety.

“No matter how many cases you have of drug possession or of shoplifting you’ve done, everybody has their own story about how they got into trouble and how they hope to get out of trouble,” Bloor said.

After 45 years as an attorney, two-thirds of it with the Benton County Prosecutor’s Office, Bloor is retiring at the end of the year.

“I legitimately thought it was time for a new chapter in my life,” he said. “I’m really happy with the leadership, including (Prosecutor) Eric Eisinger. I think he’s a legitimate leader. I’m happy to step down knowing the office is in good hands.”

In his time with the office, he’s served under two prosecuting attorneys, handled many difficult cases, including a high-profile Richland murder and was a kind, friendly face to the new attorneys coming into the office.

Both of his former bosses, Eisinger and former Prosecutor Andy Miller praised his abilities.

“His even keel personality was a steadying influence in an office constantly challenged with unexpected curves on cases so important to victims, law enforcement and the community,” Miller told the Tri-City Herald. “He reduced the stress of so many.”

Bloor has always been available if an attorney wants to chat about a difficult issue, Eisinger said. He brought a strong sense of balance to the job.

He added that it has been an honor to have him in the office.

“He’s a very hard worker. There’s something really special about someone who was really labored at their work for many years,” Eisinger said. “They take on this senior status. ... He was in a position to mentor people and be a support for them and really reflect the values of the office.”

His influence also has stretched beyond the Tri-Cities.

Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks who said it’s hard to find a public servant more distinguished than Bloor.

“After you spend some time in a room with Terry, you come to realize that the guy who is very economical in his expenditure of spoken words often has the greatest amount of insight and understanding,” he said. “I, too, look at Terry and aspire to be more like him.”

Criminal law career

The now 71-year-old attorney is the son of a Waitsburg grocery store co-owner. After watching the amount of work going into the store, Bloor and his brother decided legal careers might be less stressful.

“My dad worked six days a week from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” Bloor said. “I view it as the store owning them.”

He went to college at the University of Washington before going to law school at Willamette University. While he interned with an attorney handling insurance cases, he struggled to find work in Walla Walla County when he got his license to practice.

He extended his search to the Tri-Cities and found work there and found he enjoyed it. For the first third of his career, he handled defense cases.

But he said his career took off when he became a prosecutor.

“I liked it more that you were doing justice and you had to consider both sides of an issue,” he said “It was particularly tough to balance justice for the victim and society and being fair to the defendant.”

He enjoyed working with his co-prosecutors, and both of the men who he worked for. He called Miller a legendary figure in prosecutor circles and said Eisinger has done a good job following him.

Tough cases

In his time as a prosecutor, he’s seen it become more challenging to successfully try cases. With the introduction of DNA evidence and body camera footage, juries expect more than what they did when he started.

“In the early 80s, a rape case would be handled on the woman’s word and if the jury found her believable then they would convict,” he said. “That’s not true anymore.”

Defense attorneys also have become more vigilant in challenging expert opinions and detective observations. This has expanded out to all areas of law, Bloor said. It’s become harder to finalize divorces and deal with personal injuries.

In recent years, he’s been handling cases taken to the Washington State Court of Appeals. He said the work is less stressful, but also less exciting.

“I complain about the stress of being in trial, but it’s exciting,” he said. “It gets your heart pumping. ... It’s really hard work and it’s motivating when things go well.”

He’s remained in touch with a lot of the victims he’s worked with over the years and has been surprised when he discovers someone he had an impact on.

One of the highlights of his time as a prosecutor was handling the second trial for Kevin Hilton. The man was initially convicted in the 2002 murders of his landlords Josephine and Larry Ulrich.

Miller and Carrie Runge, then a deputy prosecutor and later a Superior Court judge, handled the first trial. The appeals court reversed the conviction after a problem with a search warrant was discovered.

Bloor and Scott Johnson handled the second trial, which took place in Asotin County because of the publicity surrounding the case. Hilton was convicted again in 2008.

He maintained his innocence even after his conviction. The case attracted a lot of local attention and a number of people believed he didn’t commit the murders, Bloor recalled.

It’s usually rare to have a murder case where a jury is asked to decide if the person committed the crime, Bloor said.

“Usually it’s a self defense or diminished capacity defense,” he said. “This was a real whodunit.”

Retirement plans

Bloor, who has been married to his wife Sharon for 20 years, said he doesn’t have any particular plans for retirement.

He enjoy piano playing, a hobby he picked up about 20 years ago, to honor his mother who was a piano teacher. And he would like to get into map making, he said.

He is considering some volunteer legal work as well, but he hasn’t made any decision.

He never had children, but his wife had five and he is close to them.

“I’m going to pursue travel and taking care of my dogs and my wife,” he said.