It is with deep sadness that I inform you of the death of Lieutenant Colonel Gerald R. Fox.  LTC Fox passed away unexpectedly on 4 September 2017. He was 56 years old.

LTC Fox, of Fairchild, formerly of Black River Falls, WI, served as the Senior Defense Counsel of the 505th Trial Defense Team, WIARNG, and the Deputy Regional Defense Counsel for the Army National Guard Trial Defense Service (ARNG TDS) for the Upper Midwest Region since March 2013.

LTC Fox enlisted in the Army in 1981.  After Basic Training, Airplane Repair School, and the Airborne Course, he was assigned to the 5th SFG(A) at Fort Bragg, NC, where he maintained, crewed, and inspected UH-1 helicopters.  In 1984, he transferred to the 7th SFG(A), where he served in increasingly demanding aviation assignments until he left active duty as a Staff Sergeant (Promotable) in June 1990 to study law.

LTC Fox was a graduate of 59th Military Judge Course.  He was also a graduate of the  Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, University of Wisconsin Law School, and licensed to practice law in the state of Wisconsin.  LTC Fox was elected to serve as Jackson County District Attorney in 2006 and re-elected to four-year terms in 2008, 2012 and most recently in 2016. He recently was recommended by U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin as one of two candidates to fill the vacant U.S. Attorney position in the Western District of Wisconsin.

LTC Fox’s dedication to service and extraordinary leadership in his civilian and military life earned him the first annual ARNG TDS COL Patrick Barnett Leadership Award in 2016.

LTC Fox is survived by his wife, Susan, mother, Joyce Bailey, and brother, Doug Fox.

Please keep the Fox family in your thoughts and prayers at this most difficult of times.

Charles N. Pede
Lieutenant General, USA
The Judge Advocate General