Ruminations: The Desire to Continue in Office
modest but also honestly reflect on my
competence and experience.” He wrote
that the single most important qualification for the bench is maturity developed
through life experiences—“Raising a family, seeing parents age and pass on, watching other people handle life’s good and
bad fortunes over many years.” 73
Justice Louis Peck’s statement reflects
his personality. He urged retention “in order that my more restrained views will have
a public voice, and at the same time serve
as at least a cautionary influence against
hasty changes in the law, based on ideological concepts alone, without thoughtful consideration of all relevant factors.”
While he refused to characterize any of his
colleagues as extremists, he worried there
was no balance on the Court, which risks
losing “the reasonable but cautious progress which may be called for by changing
times; on the other hand it promotes proper judicial restraint and acts as a brake on
abuses of judicial power.”74
Judicial Philosophy
The statements reveal the judge’s or justice’s approach to the office. Justice Dooley celebrated independent thought: “I believe that the most important quality in a
Justice is an open and inquisitive mind,
and a willingness to rethink legal doctrine
and approaches that may have once appeared to be clearly correct and even undebatable.”75 Judge Keller’s view was more
conservative, reflecting the difference between the trial judge and the appellate justice:
When I make decisions, it is not my
goal to be a judicial activist. My decisions are based upon the applicable
law as determined by the legislature
and the appellate courts. Generally, I
do not attempt to make new law but
rather to try to have my decision conform to existing law as consistently as
possible.76
In his 2000 retention statement, Judge
Edward Cashman included a copy of an interview he gave, in which he said, “I don’t
try to resolve credibility issues. I focus instead on evidentiary issues because it’s my
job to make sure that it’s a fair trial.77 Judge
Levitt, in 1986, worried about the difference between theory and reality in sentencing. “Although it is common to speak
of rehabilitation as a major goal of sentencing, there is not the expertise or the will to
actually accomplish that goal.” Realistically
speaking, she wrote, the purpose of sanctions is “punishment or to protect society
by removing the offender from society.”78
It was Judge Wolchik’s goal to “treat each
convicted defendant who is before me for
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THE VERMONT BAR JOURNAL • WINTER 2015
sentencing as an individual” and specifically to overcome the mindset that all DWIs
are the same.79 Judge Katz explained, “The
goal is always the same: Follow the law,
do justice, get it done.”80 Judge Geoffrey
Crawford explained in his 2006 statement,
“’What was’ and ‘what has been the case’
are more dependable guides than the alluring call from the siren shore of ‘what should
be’ or ‘what would be best.’” He believed,
“If one can only understand why the rule or
statute developed as it did over time, it is
usually possible to extend the rule one step
further to solve the problem at hand.” 81
Love the Job
Although they are sometimes unrestrained in their criticisms, judges and justices are often exuberant in telling the legislature how much they enjoy serving on
the bench. Judge Mary Miles Teachout, in
2002, wrote,
I have the distinct honor of a front row
seat from which to view the unfolding
of current issues in our society as well
as to hear thousands of personal stories on issues of vital importance to
those touched by them … There could
not be a more interesting, challenging,
or rewarding role.82
Judge Van Benthuysen called it “the best
job in the State of Vermont.” He was surprised his enthusiasm hadn’t diminished in
five years.83 “Where else can one combine
never-ending intellectual challenges with
the immeasurable variety of human beings
who come before our courts each week?”
asked Judge Katz.84
Judge Nancy Corsones said in 2007, “Being a judge has been the culmination of my
professional dreams.”85 Judge Crawford
wrote that “working as a judge is a way of
living within the community which requires
all that you can give intellectually and emotionally.” He explained that you “have to
reach for patience, for wisdom, for learning, for restraint, and for humor. It is the
reason that I became a lawyer.”86 Judge Kilburn wrote, “I truly believe in the Vermont
Judiciary.” They constitute the “best collection of caring, considerate capable Trial
Judges in the Country.”87 Judges are often
inspired by their encounters with litigants.
Judge Morris recognized, “We see people
when they are challenged and stressed,
more often than not at their low points, but
sometimes overcoming great adversity to
make extraordinary accomplishments.”88
Petitioning for a fourth six-year term,
Judge Davenport explained,
Someone once said that the real test
of whether you are in the right job is
whether you look forward to going