THE ROBING ROOM

In some 30 years of trying civil, but mainly criminal cases, both as a prosecutor and defense counsel, I found Judge Brinkema to be the single best trial judge before whom I've ever appeared. In a fairly recent, and high-profile case -- which was retried following an appellate reversal -- Judge Brinkema, newly assigned to the case, gave both sides a completely fair shake. She made tough calls right down the middle. It was a genuine pleasure to appear before her, and I hope to get the chance to do so again.