Sons of Liberty Medallion presented to Judge Napolitano

MILFORD — Judge Andrew Napolitano, famed jurist and constitutional authority, was awarded a special Sons of Liberty medallion from The Liberty Hill Patriots at a dinner held Dec. 5 in the Delmonico Room at the Hotel Fauchère in Milford.

Bill Chaisson of Milford is the director of Liberty Hill Patriots, the organization minting the Sons of Liberty sterling silver medallions.

The Sons of Liberty was a secret organization started in Boston in 1765 to protest the Stamp Act. They took their name from a speech in the House of Commons referring to the colonists as “these sons of liberty.”

The Sons of Liberty were in the vanguard of revolt against the British rulers, precipitating the American Revolution. To identify oneself as a member, Boston silversmith Paul Revere cast a coin-size medal worn with a ribbon around the neck.

The Sons of Liberty medallion is a sterling silver replica inspired by an original medallion found by a trout fisherman in an Adirondack stream in 1967. Liberty Hill Patriots has reproduced it in sterling silver to promote awareness of and commitment to constitutional values.

Judge Napolitano is the senior judicial analyst for the Fox News Channel, commenting on legal news and trials. He is also a syndicated columnist and Distinguished Professor of constitutional law at Brooklyn Law School. He was the youngest superior court judge in the history of New Jersey and is the author of nine books on constitutional, legal, and political subjects.

He is a libertarian who argues against government encroachment on natural and legal rights, as well as a strong advocate of broad constitutional liberties themselves. He is also noted for stalwartly disagreeing with conservatives on questions of personal freedom, national security, and equality, while also engaging in full-throated defense of more conservative ideas of economic freedom and scope of government. Judge Napolitano is often mentioned as a possible nominee to the United States Supreme Court.

“Judge Napolitano embodies the ideals of freedom, independence and constitutional protections, just as the original Sons of Liberty intended," Chaisson said. "We are honored for him to become the first awardee of our Sons of Liberty medallion.”

Medallions are also available to the public for purchase at www.libertyhillpatriots.com.