James “Jim” William Fletcher, 76, of Lee’s Summit, passed away on August 4, 2024.

Jim was born on March 12, 1948 to Thomas and Leah Fletcher in St. Louis, Missouri. He was the fourth of seven children.

Jim graduated from Normandy High School in 1966 and went on to study business at UMKC. After earning his Juris Doctorate, Jim became a public defender, eventually rising to lead the Jackson County Public Defender’s Office.

In 1966, Jim met Cathy Ozbun at Pearson Hall on UMKC Campus. After a short courtship of just 10 years, Jim and Cathy married in 1978 and went on to have two sons, James “Jace” William Fletcher Jr. and Paul Todd Fletcher.

Jim loved five things in life – his family, the law, sports, people, and Diet Pepsi.

Jim is survived by his wife, Cathy, his sons, Jace and Todd, his three grandsons, Aiden Todd, Owen James, and Jackson Russell Fletcher, and two large extended families of brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews.

A celebration of life will be held at John Knox Village’s Places (1001 NW Chipman Rd, Lee’s Summit, MO 64081) Manhattan Room on Saturday, August 10th at 1 pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the American Diabetes Association or the ACLU, an organization Jim supported passionately.