Judge Wesley Brown lived through the deadly 1918 flu epidemic and the Great Depression. When he was younger, he also had a quick temper. But he began to mellow out around age 80. That was two decades ago. During his time as a federal judge, he’s seen the courts and the law change, especially in the era of civil rights. Brown remembered presiding over one particular case that helped change attitudes toward women in the workplace.
(Third of three parts. Also see Part 1 and Part 2)
U.S. District Judge Wesley Brown lived through the advent of radio, television and now the Internet. In Part 2 of our interview, Brown talks about the changes he’s seen communication over his lifetime. He’s 102.
When Wesley Brown was born in 1907, Theodore Roosevelt was president, women started staging protests fighting for the vote and the Boy Scouts opened their first camp. As Senior U.S. District Judge, Brown still works full-time, deciding criminal and civil cases at the federal courthouse in Wichita. “I’ve been working since I was 10 years old,” Brown said during a recent interview. “I wouldn’t know what else to do.”
Here is the first in a series from a video interview with the oldest active judge in the U.S. federal courts. Watch Part 2 and Part 3.
Kenneth Alvis was raised to steal. Public defender Lacy Gilmour said when Alvis reached her office, he’d grown up being encouraged to be a thief to support his family. A traffic violation at age 17 put Alvis in adult court. When he continued to break the law after his 18th birthday, he faced a probation violation. Judge Terry Pullman had to decide whether to send Alvis to prison or give him more time to turn his life around.
Courtroom security became a major issue during the Scott Roeder murder trial. Not only did Roeder admit killing Wichita abortion provider George Tiller, the gallery drew several people who had been convicted of and spent time in prison for violent crimes against abortion clinics. Sheriff’s deputies Dioane Gates and David Rank talked about their experiences, such as walking Roeder from jail each day and maintaining a safe courtroom.
As we prepare to continue, I thought I’d share 10 of my favorite videos. Let’s call it “Season 1.” In no particular order:
Sometimes justice isn’t blind, and as Judge David Kaufman pointed out, it’s not fair, either. I like how the judge didn’t hesitate to criticize another branch of the government:
I entitled the video Guarded Compassion because it called attention to the way Deputy David Rank didn’t forget the humanity of the people he leads around in handcuffs. Such compassion is something people may overlook in law enforcement officers:
I used to joke with public defender Lacy Gilmour that every time I showed up to video one of her hearings, she won. That included Gilmour winning an acquittal for her client in a theft trial:
The story of an 18-year-old facing prison for getting in a fight really drove home how impulsive mistakes can result in big problems. Think before you act, kids:
Some don’t learn even after they go to prison. John Taylor spent 12 years and prison and wasn’t out a year before he was arrested again. Then he asked for a lower bond:
Others don’t learn until they go to prison. Teresa Cloud got five last chances but kept using drugs:
The story of deputies who fly fugitives back from other states to face charges in Wichita ended up being longer than most posts, so we split it into two parts. You can watch Part 1 and Part 2, or see it for the first time as one story:
We last saw Julius Brown in court two weeks ago. He’d violated his probation by being out past curfew the night Cindy Garcia was shot to death last June. Murder charges were dropped, but prosecutors wanted him to go to prison. Judge David Kaufman had to decide whether to reinstate probation or make Brown serve his sentence.
Bryant Douglas has spent the last seven months in jail, charged with domestic violence and criminal threat. He’s apparently not getting along with his lawyers, and that’s keeping his case from going to trial. Recently, he asked Judge David Kaufman to give him yet another public defender.
As Deputy David Rank escorts defendants from jail to court, he’s noticing more cases of burglary, robbery and theft. It’s just that time of year, he said, when people try to prey on holiday shoppers. In our latest interview, Rank said he wanted to give people tips on how to stay safe this season.
Julius Brown, 26, appeared to have dodged a murder charge. Brown was among four men charged with the shooting death last June of 20-year-old Cindy Garcia while she was driving with friends along East Harry. Last month, prosecutors dropped the murder charges against all four.
But not so fast.
Brown was serving probation on a drug conviction at the time of the shooting. The state now wants to use the murder allegation as a probation violation. As Judge David Kaufman explained, the burden of proof at a probation violation hearing is lower than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” required at a jury trial.
