WASHINGTON, March 25 2005 – LAWFUEL – The Law News Network — The tragic circumstances of the TerriSchiavo case have elicited strong feelings from all quarters. While this is completely understandable, many commentators and observers have crossed the line in using this tragedy to needlessly, gratuitously and viciously attack
the dedicated men and women who serve as America’s judges. This needs to
stop.
Regardless of how one feels about the specific circumstances of this
situation, the role of the judiciary in it is clear and straightforward. The
federal and state judges who have been assigned this case have been charged
with weighing the facts of the case and the remedies set forth in the law,
responsibilities they have carried out valiantly and with great dignity and
sensitivity to the anguish that all of the participants in this case have
endured.
While it is appropriate for commentators, policymakers and the broader
public to debate the societal challenges and dilemmas brought to light by
Terri Schiavo’s case, there is no need for personal attacks on the judges in
this case. They are not killers as some have called them, nor are they
activists bent on pushing an ideological agenda. They are simply dedicated
public servants called on to serve as impartial arbiters in a very difficult
case. Instead of maligning them for applying existing law to the case at
hand, even though it may not reflect the current will of Congress, we should
praise them for dispensing even-handed justice and upholding the independence
of the judiciary even under the most difficult circumstances. These judges
deserve our respect, not our scorn.
