This is actually a three-part post.
Part 1 - U.S. Judges live in fear:
Speaking at annual conference, four judges discuss the disruptions and death threats that followed high-profile rulingsMike McKee
The Recorder
August 13, 2007
More than two years after enraging right-wing groups by ordering Terri Schiavo's feeding tube removed, George Greer still peers over his shoulder nervously at times.
In fact, the Florida judge told a rapt audience Friday at the American Bar Association's annual meeting, he even used an alias when he registered at his San Francisco hotel on this trip.
Two years ago, he said, someone in the Bay Area threatened to kill him over his decision to end life support for the brain-damaged Schiavo. And even though that person was prosecuted and jailed, Greer said, he's taking no chances.
"It is a little unnerving," he said. "I still can't see a strange car come down my street without wondering
."
Greer, who said he's on the federal bench, was one of four current or former judges who appeared in a 90-minute seminar in San Francisco's Moscone Center West to describe how their lives were affected by their rulings in high-profile cases involving hot-button issues.
Besides Greer, there was New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Roberto Rivera-Soto, who 10 months ago participated in a ruling saying gay and lesbian couples deserve the same rights as married couples, but stopped short of approving same-sex marriage.
Eileen O'Neill, a former Texas judge who in 1993 held Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry and other anti-abortion activists in contempt for violating an order directing them to quit harassing several Houston-area doctors, was on the panel. And so was former California Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso, kicked off the bench by voters in 1986 along with two other justices for reversing death sentences.
All four spoke about the consequences of their actions, but stood firmly behind them, while fretting somewhat about the political and social pressures facing judges these days. Unstated, but hovering in the ether, was the fact that many judges believe the current presidential administration has exacerbated the problem by blaming unpopular rulings on "activist judges."
more Part 2 - Iraqi judges live in fear just like U.S. judges:
The Associated Press
Published: August 13, 2007
BAGHDAD: Some 30 Iraqi judges have been killed in the line of duty in Iraq, underscoring the need for tight security and a new complex in Baghdad aimed at protecting the justice system, U.S. and Iraqi officials said Monday.
The number was disclosed during a press conference to promote a new heavily secured justice complex in eastern Baghdad that began operating last month.
The so-called Rule of Law complex has been dubbed by some as a mini-Green Zone for Iraqi judges and investigators who will live there with their families to avoid being targeted by the violence outside. The Green Zone is a heavily fortified complex elsewhere in Baghdad that holds the U.S. and British embassies along with the Iraqi government's headquarters and parliament.
Facing accusations of human rights violations and random detentions by Iraqi and U.S. forces nationwide, the officials acknowledged that the system remained flawed but said it was important to note the improvements that had been made under extremely difficult circumstances.
morePart 3, emphasis above would explain this:
Do US, Iraqi Officials Undercount Detainees?Welcome to Bush's demockracy!
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