« Sports Business Journal confirms Barclays naming rights deal was $200 million, not $400 million | Main | Yonkers' image is all about branding »
September 19, 2011
Apology Adds An Epilogue To Kelo Case
Supreme Court Justice's Startling Apology Adds Human Context To Tough Ruling
Hartford Courant
by Jeff Benedict
Here's a must-read epilogue to the epically bad decision in the landmark court case known as Kelo vs. New London.
If a state Supreme Court judge approaches a journalist at a private dinner and says something newsworthy about an important decision, is the journalist free to publish the statement?
I faced that situation at a dinner honoring the Connecticut Supreme Court at the New Haven Lawn Club on May 11, 2010. That night I had delivered the keynote address on the U.S. Supreme Court's infamous 5-4 decision in Kelo v. New London. Susette Kelo was in the audience and I used the occasion to tell her personal story, as documented in my book "Little Pink House."
Afterward, Susette and I were talking in a small circle of people when we were approached by Justice Richard N. Palmer. Tall and imposing, he is one of the four justices who voted with the 4-3 majority against Susette and her neighbors. Facing me, he said: "Had I known all of what you just told us, I would have voted differently."
I was speechless. So was Susette. One more vote in her favor by the Connecticut Supreme Court would have changed history. The case probably would not have advanced to the U.S. Supreme Court, and Susette and her neighbors might still be in their homes.
Then Justice Palmer turned to Susette, took her hand and offered a heartfelt apology. Tears trickled down her red cheeks. It was the first time in the 12-year saga that anyone had uttered the words "I'm sorry."
NoLandGrab: We're guessing that Daniel Goldstein isn't holding his breath for a similar mea culpa from New York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman.
Related coverage...
Reason Hit & Run, Connecticut Supreme Court Justice to Susette Kelo: “I’m Sorry”
Palmer should be sorry. So should U.S. Supreme Court Justices John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, David Souter, and Anthony Kennedy, whose five votes upheld Palmer’s erroneous judgment and put the final nail in the coffin.
Posted by eric at September 19, 2011 9:25 PM