Wearing The Robe

I started my job as a Criminal Magistrate for Mecklenburg County in 2016. In prior years, I had worked as a private attorney appearing in different courtrooms in North Carolina. As a young attorney, I was awed, if not a bit intimidated, by the judge and robe that they wore. A robe is a powerful thing.

Things have changed for me since 2016. I am now that person in the robe.

My robe means many things to me. It is a cloak of responsibility that says to treat each person before me with the respect they are due no matter their own personal reality. It says that I have been recognized for all the qualities needed in my role – qualities of strength, intelligence, and determination. My robe tells me to hear the case, from all sides, and act with fairness never forgetting the fact that the people before me have a right to be treated with dignity.

The robe and how someone chooses to wear it says a lot about the person in it. Each day, I wear mine committed to the laws of North Carolina and to the people I serve. If I am entrusted to become a district court judge, I will take my robe, the one I have worn since becoming a magistrate, and I will wear it with my integrity and judicial experience within it.