Silence and the Judge

It’s disappointing that Karen Munster Cassidy, the Superior Court judge in the McGreevey divorce case, declined the Star-Ledger’s request to be interviewed for a profile story the newspaper wrote about her.

Clearly, Cassidy had a right to decline the interview – and there may be a legal reason to keep quiet – but this is reminiscent of the same mentality the greeted Mercer County Prosecutor Joe Bocchini’s comments on the much-publicized case of alleged sex assault by state troopers. At a time when the public is rightfully demanding more transparency in government, Bochinni provided a rare insight into how his office is dealing with this high profile case – on a professional and personal basis. For this, Attorney General Anne Milgram re-assigned the case to another county.

By not talking to the Ledger, Cassidy allowed other people to define her (although they did it in glowing terms) and the public missed out on learning what makes the judge in one of New Jersey’s highest profile legal cases tick.