Lynn D. 'Buck' Compton, UCLA alum and decorated veteran, dies at 90
By Daily Bruin Staff
Feb. 28, 2012 6:54 p.m.
Lynn D. “Buck” Compton, a former UCLA baseball and football player and Los Angeles district attorney, died at his daughter’s Washington home Saturday, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Compton suffered a heart attack last month, the Times reported. He was 90.
Compton attended UCLA in the early 1940s and played alongside Jackie Robinson as starting catcher on the baseball team, according to a statement from UCLA athletics. He also played offensive guard in football in 1941 and 1942 and was part of the first UCLA football team to beat USC, win a conference championship and play in the Rose Bowl.
But Compton’s athletic achievements were interrupted. In February 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was shipped out to fight in World War II.
Compton was assigned to Company E of the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, better known as Easy Company. This battalion was depicted in the HBO mini series “Band of Brothers.” On June 6, 1944, Compton and his fellow paratroopers landed behind enemy lines and participated in the D-Day invasion of Normandy. For his efforts, Compton was awarded the Silver Star. During the course of his military career, he received a number of other awards, including the Purple Heart.
After the war, Compton returned to UCLA and earned a starting position on the Bruin football team. However, he ultimately traded athletics for the dual challenges of Loyola Law School and the Los Angeles Police Department.
Compton was later admitted to the California Bar Association in 1949 and eventually rose to the rank of Los Angeles district attorney where he famously prosecuted Sirhan Sirhan, the man who assassinated Robert F. Kennedy.
Compton is survived by his daughters, Tracy and Syndee, and four grandchildren.
A full obituary in the Daily Bruin will follow in print.
Compiled by Samantha Masunaga, Bruin senior staff.
