Excerpted from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Blog: http://www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-co-founder-dean-hansell-receive-founders-award-glaad-media-awards-los-angeles (accessed on August, 15, 2013).

Dean Hansell was one of co-founders of what became known for many years as GLAAD/LA, and served as co-president for three years. Prior to GLAAD's founding, Dean had been involved with the Anti-Defamation League and the NAACP.... Dean Hansell has served a combined total of 17 years on then GLAAD/LA, and then later, the national GLAAD Board of Directors.

Dean is a Partner in the international law firm of Hogan Lovells (2,100 attorney firm in 40 cities on 4 continents.) He specializes in complex and cutting-edge litigation and arbitration. A former state and federal prosecutor, he has authored more than 25 book chapters and legal journal articles. He has argued before numerous courts including the California Supreme Court, the High Court of American Samoa, and the US Courts of Appeals for the 9th, 8th, 7th and DC Circuits.

Dean served on the Board of Trustees of Denison University, Chairs the UCLA School of Public Health Advisory Board, is the President of the Fire and Police Pension Board for the City of Los Angeles, and serves on the Boards of the California Bar Foundation, the Library Foundation of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Community College Foundation, the Police Foundation of Los Angeles and the LA Gay & Lesbian Center (former co-Chair). He is a member of the Advisory Boards of the Christopher Isherwood Foundation and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center. Dean was the former Police Commissioner of Los Angeles.

Dean has also received the Distinguished Service Medal from the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners, the Herman Humanitarian Award from Beth Chayim Chadashim, the Co-President’s Award from Lawyers for Human Rights, the Alumni Citation from Denison University, and the Humanitarian Award from the Liberty Hill Foundation.