Tough Cases: Judges Tell Stories of Some of the Hardest Decisions They’ve Ever Made

Editor’s Note: In Tough Cases, a newly published collection of essays, judges from across the country recollect their experiences presiding over courtroom conflicts – conflicts that generated intense legal debate, great public attention or profound personal anguish. The book so impressed us that we asked one of its editors, Judge Gregory Mize, to highlight for our readers some of the cases it details. As you’ll see, their stories provide not only a stroll through some of the most significant jurisprudence in recent decades, but also a reminder of the vital role played by extraordinary human beings whose everyday job it is to preserve the Rule of Law.As any judge who has served on a trial court can attest, there are many assignments where the cases come at you so hard and fast that there is barely time to step into the box and take your stance before the next one comes zooming in. And that is true of the “easy” cases. This book is not about those. It’s about the rare times in a judicial career where the judge has to wrestle with a problem so complex, or so emotionally draining, as to test the fortitude and impartiality of even…