Lawyer Danny Moore was a unique individual

Danny Moore, the Poplar Bluff lawyer best known for his prowess at criminal defense, is remembered by family, friends and colleagues as a unique man.

Bob Nickell, a former reporter and editor of the Daily American Republic who knew Danny for nearly 50 years, summed it up: “Danny was a bright light and his radiance will be missed.”

Daniel Thomas Moore, 73, died of cancer on Aug. 10, 2024, only a few months after the diagnosis. He was born on June 25, 1951, at Springfield, the son of Ernest William Moore and Alice Elizabeth Mullaley Moore. He was married to Shelley Sizemore Moore on Dec. 2, 1977, nine months after they met on March 1 that year.

Raised on a small farm in Christian County, south of Springfield, Danny graduated as valedictorian of the Class of 1969 at tiny Sparta High School. When a Poplar Bluff friend congratulated him years later on his academic achievement, Danny replied: “Hell, we only had 13 in my senior class.”

Coming from a family of meager means, Danny enrolled at the nearby School of the Ozarks, where students cover expenses by working jobs assigned to them by various campus enterprises such as the farm program. He once confided to a friend that he went away to college carrying his clothes and all his other belongings in a large, cardboard box that once contained chickens his parents had bought.

On graduation from the School of the Ozarks, Danny applied to the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law. He always had wanted to be a lawyer. When the school did not respond to his application after a week, he called the admissions office but got little information. So he called again the next week, and the next, and the next.

“Finally, after I had bugged them a half-dozen times, the man said: “Okay, you’re in,” Danny told friends later. That perseverance apparently persisted throughout Danny’s professional career as an attorney for half a century. His work ethic was legendary in area legal circles as he prepared for one of his frequent felony trials in criminal court.

“Danny went to court knowing more than you did about your own case,” said Mike Elliott, a retired captain of detectives for the Poplar Bluff Police Department. “He could embarrass you,” Elliott recalls. “I always said the best thing that could happen to a young patrolman was to be on the witness stand with Danny Moore. He made some really good police officers – in about 10 minutes.”

Elliott, a veteran street cop known for holding his own in any verbal or physical scuffle, said: “I have to admit this. When I was told Danny had died, I cried. We lost someone really special.”

Kevin Barbour, now retired as one of Butler County’s longest-serving prosecuting attorneys, was the opposing lawyer in many of Danny’s cases. Barbour lauded his dear friend as “one of the best lawyers and nicest guys I’ve ever known. Unlike too many of the attorneys, Danny Moore never lied to me one time.”

Barbour said Danny “always was a straight shooter. He was an exceptional man and a formidable opponent.”

Retired newspaper editor Stan Berry, one of the first people Danny met when he came to Poplar Bluff in the middle 1970s, remained one of his closest friends for 50 years. Berry said Danny once told him he had worked his way through law school without ever seeking a student loan. One job was fixing flat tires and mounting new ones at a tire shop in his home town of Sparta.

“Danny was successful, but he always worked real hard for what he got,” Berry recalled.

Attorney Sam Spain called Danny “a man of his word. If he told me something, (I knew) he was going to stand by it.”

Some of Spain’s fondest memories of Danny involved riding bikes with him. “I rode probably 50,000 miles with Danny. He was really pretty tough. It was never too hot or too cold. We suffered a lot out there in the woods, but we had a lot of fun.

Spain marveled at Danny’s stamina. Until illness overtook him, Danny rode his bike virtually every day early in the morning for decades. Spain described a typical day for Danny Moore. “He’d get up at 3:30, ride 32 miles on his bike, go to the office and work a couple of hours. Then he might jump in his truck and drive to Shannon County and maybe down to Oregon County for court hearings and go back to Poplar Bluff to an office full of clients. Then he might drive somewhere to a ball game to watch his son’s team play. (Zac Moore has coached basketball at several area high schools.)

“He could squeeze about as much into 24 hours as any two people I ever knew. I don’t know when he ever had time to sleep,” Spain recalled.

Devin Kirby, the associate circuit judge at Doniphan, praised Danny for mentoring him as a young lawyer shortly after he graduated from law school.

“Danny, more than anyone else, had the most profound effect on my law career, Judge Kirby recalls. “When I was just getting started he guided me and actually taught me how to practice law. I could always bounce ideas off Danny if I was in an unusually difficult case and he always was brutally honest with me and would help me.

“We became close friends and have traveled together a lot attending Mizzou sports events. He was just a great guy and I’ll miss him dearly, especially his wit and sense of humor.

Retired local attorney L. Joe Scott, who hired Danny fresh out of law school and practiced law with him for about 20 years, remembers the first time they met.

“Danny had graduated from law school and I heard about him somehow so I called him and asked if he would drive over and meet me at Van Buren the following week for an interview. I needed a lawyer for my practice.

“Danny seemed a little bit reluctant but he finally told me he had promised his father he would help him build a pole barn on the farm that week. I was good with that so we agreed to meet a week later.

“Danny showed up for the interview with real long hair and wearing bib overalls. He was driving a jacked-up old car with really loud straight pipes. We visited a bit and I liked Danny. I could tell he was really smart. He had a sense of humor. He was about as “country” as I was so I knew he’d be a hard worker and we would get along.

“Danny and I worked together for about 20 years and then he decided to establish his own law practice,” Scott said.

Danny partnered with lawyer Steve Walsh for about 15 years and for the last 15 years had a solo law practice.

Attorney John Scott, whose father hired Danny when he was a toddler, said: “Dan was like an uncle to me growing up. Most people knew him as a good criminal lawyer. But what I admired the most about him was his dedication to his family. And, of course, Dan Moore was the funniest person I’ve ever known.”

Veteran Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett, who presided over more than 100 jury trials before his retirement, described Danny as “one of the most, if not THE most effective advocate for his clients I ever had in a courtroom.

“Danny had a unique ability to understand the value of the cases he tried. He could identify both the strengths and the weaknesses of his case. And, his character and personality were very appealing to jurors. I always considered him a really true, dear and loyal friend; I knew I always could count on Danny, just like his clients did,” the respected jurist said.

Judge Pritchett, who still works parttime as a senior judge, added: “I can’t express how much I shall miss Danny’s laughter, his legal skills and just his presence in my courtroom.”

Danny’s children, reminiscing about their father, all have poignant memories about him. Son Zac, a high school basketball coach in the region for the past 20 years, said Danny always was a huge supporter of him and his teams. Zac also has fond memories of their many father-son trips to major sporting events around the country, including trips to the National Sports Collectors annual conventions.

Danny’s daughter, Leigh, called her father “a giant among men. I am grateful for the privilege of standing on his shoulders for 50 years. I need 50 more. I shall never forget his love, generosity, wit and wisdom.”

Granddaughter Danni said she got her love of history from her Papi when he helped her with homework during both high school and college. “I loved learning from him,” she said. “And, he taught me everything I know about golf. He, truly, was the best Papi.”

Daughter Lane, who worked in Danny’s office for the past 10 years, fondly remembers a childhood filled with her Dad’s presence.

“We went somewhere nearly every weekend, it seems, on countless family visits and vacations. He coached his kids and grandkids in sports. He excelled in his job but always had time for his family. He always could be found horseplaying with and reading to his grandkids. He loved them dearly,” Lane said.

“I’m confident I learned more from my Dad than any school could ever teach. He was generous, hilarious, brilliant, kind and often referred to by his clients as a ‘bulldog.’ And, they were right,” Lane said.

“He never took anything personally and never let his job affect his relationships with his colleagues. More important than being a talented attorney, he was an exceptional Dad and Papi,” Lane said.

Jason Morgan, Danny’s son-in-law, describes him as a loyal, loving, selfless and easygoing man. “He always gave sound advice along with a remarkable sense of humor. As a young police officer (on the witness stand) Dan could be terrifying in the courtroom. I learned a lot from him over the years.

“He was a wonderful father-in-law, husband, dad, Papi, brother and uncle who will be missed every day,” Morgan said.

Danny’s survivors include his wife, Shelley; two daughters, Leigh (Jason) Morgan, Lane (Darren) Summers, and one son, Zac (Jamie) Moore, all of Poplar Bluff; one brother, Patrick (Barbara) Moore, and two sisters, Susan (Jesse) Porter and Catherine Phillips, all of Sparta; seven grandchildren, Alec Green, Coco Raymer, Danni Raymer, Teagan Kassing, Sybil Summers, Luca Summers and Sloane Summers and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and a son, Lucas Warren Moore (Kelly Holcomb).

A public visitation is scheduled for 1-5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 24, at the Westwood Center, 2445 N. Westwood, Poplar Bluff. A private wake will follow. The family has asked that any memorials be in the form of donations to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in the following form:

“In memory of Daniel T. Moore, MD Anderson Cancer Center, PO Box 4486, Houston, TX, 77210-4486 or MDAnderson.org/Gifts.