Following a Dream Once Deferred, Graduating Student To Join Marine Judge Advocates

When it comes to military service, some hear the clarion call, and answer. Lauren Leonard ’24 heard the clarinet call of the U.S. Marine Band.

The daughter of two clarinet players who met in the band, Leonard has spent the past two years getting physically and academically qualified to join the Marines as an officer. She will become a lawyer in the Marine Corps after she graduates from the University of Virginia School of Law on May 19.

“As musicians, my parents didn’t have to go through basic training — they entered as staff sergeants, were paid to play at functions and got to travel the world,” Leonard said. “I played the trombone and wanted to do it professionally, too, but my dad would always tell me, ‘Music is an extremely tough road, and unless you get a living-wage job, you’ll be struggling your whole life.’ I think he wanted me to follow my passion without the financial hardship.”

There is evidence suggesting that law was, in fact, her passion. As a child, she had to create a project illustrating her self-identity using the letters of the alphabet. For L, she listed “Lawyer.”

Lauren Leonard, Lawyer.

She deferred that dream after undergraduate school because she graduated from the University of Washington at the tail end of the Great Recession, and every lawyer she knew discouraged her from following their path at the time.

Instead, she worked as a paralegal for several years — including at the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C., and as a victim’s advocate in Washington state — and first approached the Marines about joining as an officer more than 10 years ago.

A woman she met during the process set her up with an enlisted Marine as his date to the Marine Corps Ball. She ended up marrying Sgt. Peter Leonard.

Once her husband’s enlistment was up, he left the Marines for civilian life. She and Peter were “comfortable” with their new life in Seattle, but “not entirely happy,” she said.

“We both didn’t want to continue on a life trajectory just because of a sunk-cost fallacy,” Leonard said. “I want to be happy, and I only get this one life.”

So she studied for the LSAT at night and crossed her fingers for an acceptance letter from the University of Virginia, which she had visited while working at the FTC. Her husband followed her to Charlottesville and attended Piedmont Virginia Community College to pursue an engineering degree.

Once she started her first year here, she realized she didn’t have to set aside either of her dreams.

“I’ve wanted to be a lawyer and a Marine at different times in my life, but I had never considered being both,” Leonard said. “The local recruiting office reached out to the Law School to see if any students were interested in becoming a Marine judge advocate, and I realized this is my chance to chase two dreams at once.”

She started working with an officer selection officer here, attending fitness events and CrossFit classes. The OSO helped her obtain an age waiver because she’s over 29.

However, she would still need to pass the physical fitness tests before being considered for Officer Candidates School, where candidates work for 10 weeks to earn the title of Marine. That would mean at least three pullups, running three miles in under 27 minutes and being able to hold a full-body plank for at least a minute.

“When I started, I couldn’t even do one pushup, let alone a pullup,” she said. “But that’s the thing: You shouldn’t let where you start dictate what you’re capable of.”

It took her about three months of practicing with reverse pullups and weightlifting to achieve her first true pullup.

Now she can do 10.

Leonard also runs the three-miler in about 26 minutes — a five-minute improvement from her start — and can hold a plank for three minutes and 45 seconds.

“Marine officers are badasses, leaders and mentors,” Leonard said. “I thought, ‘Why can’t that be me?’ Pursuing this path helped me see myself differently and believe that I am capable of more.”

A classmate and friend, Rose Genaris ’24, called Leonard’s journey “incredibly inspiring” to watch.

“I had not known a more resilient individual in my life until I met her. Lauren possesses a rare combination of intellect, empathy and integrity that sets her apart,” Genaris said. “And as she pursues her dream, I have full confidence that Lauren will not only change the world for the better but will also do so with kindness and compassion. She is truly someone that I am honored to call a friend.”

Even if the Marine Corps hadn’t worked out, Leonard was determined to continue working in the public interest. She is a fellow in the Program in Law and Public Service, and she took Law and Public Service, and her Public Interest Law and Advocacy Skills with Professor Annie Kim ’99.

“Lauren is going to be an excellent public service attorney in whatever field she chooses because of her integrity, tenacity and empathy for others,” Kim said. “As a Marine, Lauren will no doubt be an advocate for justice and a source of inspiration for women following in her footsteps.”

Leonard sought out opportunities to learn about both sides of criminal law, working as an intern at the Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and being part of the Innocence Project Clinic.

“The criminal justice system can do a lot of harm to people — it can ruin lives — so for those of us who are interested in prosecution, exposure to the defense side is a valuable reminder that we are dealing with humans,” Leonard said. “Until there is an alternative model of the justice system, remembering the humanity in all people is part of the answer to preventing mistakes and bad prosecutions.”

Leonard is excited that the Marine Corps offers “opportunities and a lifestyle that not many lawyers get,” including exposure to different areas of the law, travel and even learning self-defense.

More important, she said, “I get to be a part of something bigger than myself and serve an organization that brought my parents together and helped me meet my husband.”

Because of her husband’s own history in the Marines, he tagged along to the fitness events and other weekend Marine functions. When the OSO noticed his athleticism, he asked the former enlisted Marine if he would be interested in rejoining the corps and attending officer training.

He’ll get to wear his officer dress blues, for the very first time, to her graduation.