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 Biography
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Dick Black was born in Baltimore, Maryland near his mother's
farm. He grew up in Miami, Florida.
Dick Black enlisted in the Marines in 1963. By age 21, he was commissioned a second lieutenant, and became one of the Marines' youngest carrier-qualified pilots. He flew 269 combat helicopter missions in Vietnam. He also saw bitter ground combat with the 1st Marine Regiment, and received the Purple Heart for wounds he received while attacking enemy positions across Hoi An River.
 After the war he served as a flight instructor and later attended engineer school and graduated second in his class.
He became a Company Commander and deployed to Vieques, Puerto Rico, where his 240 man outfit engaged in heavy construction, including the development of a large rock quarry and rebuilding the island airstrip.
Dick left the Marines to attend college. He majored in accounting and graduated with honors from the University of Florida School of Business. While there, he was twice elected to the Student Senate, served on the Finance Committee, and founded the Florida Veterans Association. After interning with the Arthur Andersen tax department, he completed law school at the Univ. of Florida.
In private practice, he founded the first legal clinic in Northern Florida and later accepted a commission as a Major in the United States Army's Judge Advocate General's Corps ( JAG. ) He quickly became chief prosecutor for a base of nearly 100,000 soldiers and civilians.
Afterward, he was chosen Class Leader for 55 attorneys attending postgraduate legal studies at JAG's school in Charlottesville, VA. Following graduation, he became deputy for a legal organization with nine branches in Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
The JAG of the Army statutorily appointed Dick to head the legal office at Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri. There, he developed a reputation for crime suppression. A firm opponent of drunk driving, he pushed through legislation that curbed drunk driving. His bill was enacted by the Missouri legislature and signed into law by then Governor Ashcroft. An ex-officio member of the City Council for St. Robert, Black led a major crackdown on vice that shut down eight prostitution houses. The crackdown suppressed crime and revived legitimate local businesses.
His success led to two successive appointments to head larger law offices. The first was Ft. Ord, California and then at Ft. Lewis, Washington. At Ft. Lewis, Washington, he executed one of the most complex federal land transactions in recent years, negotiating and developing legislation that protected competing interests of state and federal agencies, environmental groups, ranchers, the Wanapum Tribe and the Yakima Indian Nation. His efforts helped preserve, in perpetuity, hunting and fishing rights of the Indian people, and provided for the eventual return of a vast, 63,000 acre tract to them.
Called to Washington D.C. to head the Pentagon's Army Criminal Law Division, Black was responsible for military justice throughout the Army. He developed Executive Orders for the President's signature, and laws that were enacted by Congress. He advised senior government officials on issues of national significance - - including the Tailhook scandal. He testified before Congress on several topics, including Victims' Rights, weapons smuggling, and the Haitian intervention. His division drafted the rules now governing the U.N. Bosnian War Crimes Tribunal.
In 1994, Colonel Dick Black retired from military service to become a partner in the firm of Taylor, Horbaly, and Black. In addition to operating a successful law practice, Dick Black is a frequent media guest who has appeared over 20 times on CNN. Black frequently comments on foreign and military affairs, as well as the national debate over Internet Pornography.
As a member of the Fairfax and Loudoun County Republican Committees, Black has been very active in politics. Black was Chairman of Attorney General Mark Earley's highly successful campaign for Northern Virginia.
Appointed Trustee of the Loudoun County Library Board in early 1997, he drafted and led the fight to enact a Policy on Internet Sexual Harassment, which blocked explicit Internet pornography from the library Internet.
Delegate Black was elected to the House of Delegates in February 1998. His election marked the first time since reconstruction that Republicans achieved parity with the Democrats in the House.
Delegate Black is a member of the Law Enforcement Alliance of America, the Knights of Columbus, Izaac Walton League, American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, National Federation of Independent Business, Family Foundation, Concerned Women for America, Virginia Right to Life, Virginia Society for Human Life, Marine Helicopter Association and the Herpetologist Society of Virginia
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