This just seems wrong. A judge should not impose his/her beliefs on the appropriateness or applicability of criminal laws – that undermines confidence in the legal system. While we can complain that a sexual predator is walking free to victimize others (and that may not be the case because the accused was 17 years old at the time and both he and the girl were drunk at a party), it also would mean that a judge would go outside legislative guidelines and sentence some more harshly for a different kind of crime. The judge is supposed to apply the laws as passed by the legislature and signed by the executive branch. I think Simple Justice is exactly right on this one:
I was posting a link on today’s Open Forum to a Simple Justice article about a judge throwing out a case, even though he had just stated that all of the elements of the crime were met, because he didn’t want to follow mandatory sentencing guidelines. So, instead of following the law or declaring the guidelines unconstitutional, he threw out the case.
Ethics Alarms 
This just seems wrong. A judge should not impose his/her beliefs on the appropriateness or applicability of criminal laws – that undermines confidence in the legal system. While we can complain that a sexual predator is walking free to victimize others (and that may not be the case because the accused was 17 years old at the time and both he and the girl were drunk at a party), it also would mean that a judge would go outside legislative guidelines and sentence some more harshly for a different kind of crime. The judge is supposed to apply the laws as passed by the legislature and signed by the executive branch. I think Simple Justice is exactly right on this one:
https://blog.simplejustice.us/2022/01/14/judge-robert-adrians-farcical-self-reversal/
jvb
PS: I would link to the NYT article but it is behind a paywall though Scott links in his article.
John, what is this responding to? For some reason it got linked to a floating page.
I was posting a link on today’s Open Forum to a Simple Justice article about a judge throwing out a case, even though he had just stated that all of the elements of the crime were met, because he didn’t want to follow mandatory sentencing guidelines. So, instead of following the law or declaring the guidelines unconstitutional, he threw out the case.
jvb
It didn’t post there. I’ll move it.
Thanks. Technology and i/ have a strained relationship.
jvb
That has never happened before!
Well, we are talking about me, so . . . .
jvb