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| Categories | Thrillers & Suspense |
| Author | John Grisham |
| Publisher | Vintage (August 23, 2022) |
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 480 pages |
| Item Weight | 9 ounces |
| Dimensions |
4.17 x 1.18 x 7.5 inches |
I. Book introduction
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Investigator Lacy Stoltz follows the trail of a serial killer, and closes in on a shocking suspect—a sitting judge—in “one of the best crime reads of the year…. Bristling with high-tech detail and shivering with suspense…. Worth staying up all night to finish” (Wall Street Journal).
In The Whistler, Lacy Stoltz investigated a corrupt judge who was taking millions in bribes from a crime syndicate. She put the criminals away, but only after being attacked and nearly killed. Three years later, and approaching forty, she is tired of her work for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct and ready for a change.
Then she meets a mysterious woman who is so frightened she uses a number of aliases. Jeri Crosby’s father was murdered twenty years earlier in a case that remains unsolved and that has grown stone cold. But Jeri has a suspect whom she has become obsessed with and has stalked for two decades. Along the way, she has discovered other victims.
Suspicions are easy enough, but proof seems impossible. The man is brilliant, patient, and always one step ahead of law enforcement. He is the most cunning of all serial killers. He knows forensics, police procedure, and most important: he knows the law.
He is a judge, in Florida—under Lacy’s jurisdiction.
He has a list, with the names of his victims and targets, all unsuspecting people unlucky enough to have crossed his path and wronged him in some way. How can Lacy pursue him, without becoming the next name on his list?
The Judge’s List is by any measure John Grisham’s most surprising, chilling novel yet.
Plot
Three years after the events of The Whistler, Lacy Stolz is tired of her work as an investigator for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct. But when Jeri Crosby nervously approaches her, Lacy discovers that a sitting judge is a murderer. She’s reluctant to get involved, but Jeri is obsessed with bringing the man to justice.
Jeri’s father was one of the victims 20 years earlier, although his case has never been solved. She has studied the judge for two decades, and has discovered other victims in the process.
While the serial killer’s guilt is never really in doubt, finding evidence to convict him is a much bigger challenge, because he knows the law, and is always one step ahead of law enforcement. He has a list that includes the names of all his targets who have wronged him in some way, and Lacy must help Jeri establish his guilt without either of them becoming his next victim.
About John Grisham
John Grisham (born February 8, 1955 in Jonesboro, Arkansas) is an American novelist, lawyer and former member of the 7th district of the Mississippi House of Representatives, known for his popular legal thrillers. According to the American Academy of Achievement, Grisham has written 28 consecutive number-one fiction bestsellers, and his books have sold 300 million copies worldwide. Along with Tom Clancy and J. K. Rowling, Grisham is one of only three authors to have sold two million copies on a first printing.
Grisham graduated from Mississippi State University and earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1981. He practised criminal law for about a decade and served in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1983 to 1990.
Grisham’s first novel, A Time to Kill, was published in June 1989, four years after he began writing it. Grisham’s first bestseller, The Firm, sold more than seven million copies. The book was adapted into a 1993 feature film of the same name, starring Tom Cruise, and a 2012 TV series which continues the story ten years after the events of the film and novel. Seven of his other novels have also been adapted into films: The Chamber, The Client, A Painted House, The Pelican Brief, The Rainmaker, The Runaway Jury, and Skipping Christmas.
Grisham is a two-time winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction and was honored with the Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction.
When he’s not writing, Grisham serves on the board of directors of the Innocence Project and of Centurion Ministries, two national organizations dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongfully convicted. Much of his fiction explores deep-seated problems in our criminal justice system.
John Girsham lives on a farm in central Virginia.
II. [Reviews] The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2) by John Grisham
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1. JANB review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
I had forgotten how much I enjoy a straight up legal thriller/investigation with a linear timeline, only a few characters to keep straight, and no crazy twists. I flew through this book in 24 hours without a single eye roll or picking up my phone out of boredom.
Lacy, an investigator with the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct investigates complaints of judicial corruption. Murder has never been one of the complaints, until now. She has a clandestine meeting with Jeri, a woman who is so frightened she uses multiple aliases to avoid detection. Twenty years ago, her father was killed and the case went cold. For twenty years she has conducted her own investigation and discovered a string of murders all using the same method. The commonality among the victims? Judge Ross Bannick. She knows the motives and she knows the method. But the judge is highly intelligent, patient, knows the law, and knows how to avoid detection. He is the pillar of the community, both personally and professionally.
Lacy is skeptical and initially refuses the case on the ground that her department does not investigate murder. Eventually she relents and with her most trusted investigators, the cat and mouse games begin. We know from the start who the murderer is, so the thrill is not who, but how. I also loved the information about serial murderers and the dark web sprinkled throughout. There was a character who does something incredibly stupid, putting herself at risk, but people do tend to do stupid things and I understood her why, so I just went with it.
I loved both of these women, especially Jeri, and I hope one day she gets her own book. The woman has skills! This is the second book in a series, with The Whistler being the first, (a book I forgot I read and from my GR rating, not one I enjoyed) but I’m glad I gave this one a chance. No need to read book #1 first, as this one works perfectly as a standalone. After a string of disappointments and dnf’s my reading buddy Marialyce and I found this one a joy from start to finish. I rate according to enjoyment level and for that alone it would get 5 stars! Grisham is at his best, with excellent writing and characterizations, and I can’t wait to read his next one!
2. HOLLY B review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
Legal suspense at its best!
We have a corrupt judge that gets tangled in a game of cat and rat. Could he have been found out? After all this time? He is arrogant and worried (with good reason). “For the first time in his life, he felt like he was on the run”.
Murder here, murder there, seems like everywhere? What is the connection? Someone knows……. a lot!
I really enjoyed this one and was reading it simultaneously with Bone Deep, the true crime novel that highlights massive corruption in the legal system which made it seem even more credible.
The investigators are on his trail, trying to stay off his deadly list. There are some suspenseful moments and a few nail-biting scenes as they closed in, this made for a fantastic legal thriller!
I read the first in this series, but this could be a standalone. If he writes a third, I’ll be in line for it.
If you enjoy strong female leads, brilliant characterization, twisty “gotcha” moments and the behind the scenes hunt for a creepy psychopath, you may enjoy it as much as I did.
Own a copy/ Feb 2022
3. RUTH PETER review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
Not many books leave me speechless and fulfilled at the same time. The judges list is one book which could work well as a stand alone thriller. You needn’t read ‘The Whistler‘ to understand it.
Lacy works for the Florida Board of Judicial Conduct (BJC), and investigates corrupt judges. The setting of this book takes place three years when Lacy is getting bored with her Job.
Things don’t kick off or rather become interesting when she meets Jeri, a woman who is convinced that there is a judge in Lacy’s jurisdiction that has murdered several people. Suspicions are easy enough, but proof seems impossible…
He is a judge. He knows the legal system, how it functions and he’s smart enough to avoid detection.
POV changes a few times through out the course of the story. Grisham really develops the characters in this story.
Over all, I enjoyed this story but it’s inclined to being long, slow and plodding. An issue fans of fast-paced thrillers are going to find irritating.
I highly recommend this novel for fans of legal thrillers. The beginning of the story is an attention-grabber and the story keeps you guessing.
4. MARIALYCE review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
The John Grisham I love is back with a thriller that certainly got my attention. I so enjoyed how a true storyteller can weave a tale without the benefit of “tons” of characters, eye rolling circumstances, and things that have you shaking your head with their absurdities.
In this tale, we met two strong women, Lacy Stoltz, a lawyer who investigates “dirty” lawyers on the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct, and Jeri Crosby, who has a plethora of many pseudo names for an excellent reason. Jeri comes to Lacey after exhausting all other avenues in a search for the killer of her beloved father. She has been on the trial of the killer for twenty years and over that time has discovered many “interesting” things about a particular judge, Judge Ross Bannick. Lacy initially is reluctant to take on what seems to be a murder investigation, she insists it’s really a police matter, but Jeri is persistent and wears her down.
What these ladies find with the help of some others make up the story that is filled with all the things we who have read Grisham love, a tight story, a page turning thriller, and a desire to see justice prevail. Jan and I so enjoyed our foray into this Florida Pan Handle environment and were very so pleased with seeing once again Grisham at his best.
Of course, there’s a lot more to the story, but revealing more just might spoil the path this one takes. Interestingly, my eldest daughter is an attorney, who does this job on a federal level so she, of course, put this book at the top of her reading list.
Overall, a very strong recommendation for this story comes from this reader. It has all the elements that make a thriller exciting, motivating, and so believable and a wonderful story to read with my reading companion, Jan. We deserved a five star read and got it with this story.
5. LIGHTHOUSE88 review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
Lacy Stoltz works for the Bureau on Judicial Conduct in the state of Florida. She is the senior lawyer working there because turnover is high. Her office investigates complaints and then decides the next step in the process that includes letting a judge know of the complaint. Lacy is in a relationship with an FBI Agent which may or may not lead to marriage.
Lacy’s life is about to be challenged when she receives a request to meet from a woman who may be filing a very unusual complaint against a sitting judge. When Lacy meets with Jeri, she isn’t quite sure what to expect, but the complaint that a judge is committing murder is the last thing Lacy expected. Jeri has been on the judge’s track for two decades once she realized her father was murdered. As Jeri sets out to look for answers, she uncovers what might possible be a serial killer!
Now the course is set, and Lacy must follow the leads where there is only possible motive and maybes. There is not one shred of physical proof for her or the police to collect and study. The judge is thought to have committed murder over a couple of decades but never has a sitting judge been investigated let alone found guilty of such a heinous crime.
Judge Bannick learns he is being investigated not through Lacy but using his vast resources that are safely hidden away in what he calls “The Vault.” Time is of the essence as the judge feels his craftly constructed world of hidden secrets and crimes is about to be exposed for the world to see.
I read the novel in just a couple days. I was captivated by the hunt of capturing the man responsible for so many deaths. It has been a while since I read a John Grisham novel, and I was hoping this would be equal to his earlier works that I thought were excellent. I wasn’t disappointed. The novel has a strong plot, interesting characters, and suspense from beginning to end. I hope other readers enjoy the book, and I will keep an eye out for future books by Grisham. In the meantime, I plan on going to read about Lacy Stoltz’s adventures in The Whistler.
6. RONALD H.CLARK review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
One reason I found this latest Grisham interesting is that he departs from a number of his standard elements. For example, in some novels he wants to get the excitement pitch going at the outset; in one story he had somebody jump off an eight story balcony to get things started. Here, the main element at the beginning consists of an extensive discussion between the two lead characters, both women and one African American. They are the two principal characters: Jeri and Lacy. One is a senior attorney on the state Board of Judicial Conduct, the other a college teacher who claims a very prominent judge has killed a number of people, including her law professor father over a period of 22 years. It is these discussions, developed in very fine dialogue by Grisham, that sets the story.
In addition, Grisham puts the reader in a position to observe most of the murders being committed, several extensively, which I don’t remember from his other books. Grisham has become interested in computer gizmos, so he explains how the Judge can inject programs into police files, travel records, or any computer system which will then disclose any requested information. This is because Grisham uses his novels to educate the reader about different aspects of the legal system. This is why he examines serial killers and what we know about them in detail through dialogue between Lacy and the retired head of the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit.
So the story proceeds as Lacy investigates the allegations. None of this is the typical Grisham page-turning excitement seen in his other books. But this changes dramatically when the hunters become the hunted–the Judge learns of the investigation and undertakes to find out who are the participants and how to remove them. This is still not “The Firm” kind of excitement, but it is still engrossing. We are invited into the mind of the Judge to see how he plans to escape when his effort to neutralize Jeri and Lacy are frustrated. So the pace picks up a bit.
I am not going to even touch upon the finish, which I think is some of Grisham’s most creative and innovative writing I have seen. I have spent a good deal of time thinking through it, but all I can say is you need to read it and reach your own conclusion. It is entirely unique but I can still imagine it happening. So this is a special Grisham “legal thriller” which deviates from his well worn story lines but reflects his growing skill and creativity as a novelist. He is not one to do “the same old, same old.”
7. LA review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
John Grisham is pretty much the owner of his own niche of books: the legal thriller. There are many other authors who write this type of book, but it is Grisham who stands at the very top. Almost forty legal thriller novels, over 300 million books in print, etc. From the first one published in 1989, his legal thrillers have gone number one consistently. He’s so good as an author, at plotting, at character building, at dialogue, at velocity, etc., he’s the master.
He most often will take a specific subject, in this latest outing, serial killers who are also sitting judges, research the subject thoroughly, and weave the facts and context and motivations into a story which draws us deeper and deeper with each paragraph. This latest, “The Judge’s List,” is, in my opinion, one of his best. To be writing at his best after 40 years on the job says a lot about how truly skilled he is.
Grisham gives us Lacy Stoltz, an experienced investigator at the Board of Judicial Conduct in Florida, a backwater, sleepy agency which investigates complaints against judges. She gets a cold call from Jeri Crosby, whose father was killed 20 years ago. She has spent those 20 years tracking down her father’s killer, and has discovered that the killer has killed at least ten other victims, using the exact same technique: a blunt instrument to the head, and a nylon rope tied around the neck with a unique knot at the end. Crosby believes the killer is a sitting judge; she files a complaint against the judge with Lacy, who is obligated by law to investigate all complaints. Thus, Grisham sets up an intriguing story—Lacy involves the various agencies and instruments of state, local and federal government to investigate and ultimately reveal the judge’s crimes. How they unite and work together, how they track the judge, how they almost get killed by the judge, and how they ultimately solve the case, is Grisham at his best.
When Grisham has wandered into fields outside the legal thriller neighborhood, such as his sports books and his young adult books, I felt that he was good, but not great. With every one of his legal thrillers, I always felt like I was reading the master. And so it is with “The Judge’s List,” Grisham at his best, giving us exactly what we want in a legal thriller. Can’t wait for his next one.
8. MANDY WHITE review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
What can I say about John Grisham that hasn’t already been said a hundred times over. He really is the master of the legal thriller and The Judge’s List is just more evidence of that. His books always draw me in from the first few pages and leave me needing to read more. I binged this book in one lazy Saturday at home during lockdown and I am not sorry about it. I will read anything this man writes and have been doing so for many many years now.
The Judge’s List sees us reunited with Lacey Stolz from The Whistler. It is 3 years later and she is almost 40 and trying to work out what she wants from life. Her job at the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct is not exciting her anymore and she is contemplating a change. That is until a mysterious phone call leads to case like no other she has ever worked on. The FBJC does not do murder cases, but there has never been an allegation that a sitting judge was a serial killer before. We know from early on who the killer is, a very clever and cunning judge who has a list of people who have wronged him in his life. He is patient and doesn’t leave any evidence behind. But somebody has figured him out now.
It is a page turner, and you will not see the ending coming. I certainly didn’t. It was a WHAT moment at midnight that made me applaud the brain of John Grisham. Never a dull moment as we watch Lacey and her team try to get the evidence to take the judge down.
Thank you to Hachette Australia for sending me an advanced copy of this book to read. Out on October 19th.
9. DARLA review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
More Lacy Stoltz. More Lacy Stoltz. More Lacy Stoltz. This second book in the Whistler series gives Lacy a tricky dilemma to untangle. A woman wants to remain anonymous while reporting a sitting judge guilty of multiple murders. A serial killer is on the loose and this sociopath has on-line skills that keep him ahead of law enforcement while highly capable of tracking down his victims. Who will be next? Jeri Crosby, the woman who has been tracking him since her father’s death twenty years ago? Lacy Stoltz, the interim director for the Board on Judicial Conduct? This rises to the top of the pack for me in the field of Grisham’s novels. I enjoy a woman protagonist and in this one we get two. There is plenty of cloak and dagger as well as a thrilling game of cat and mouse in multiple contexts. Finally, this is a legal thriller without any political strings attached. It is just downright entertaining. Mr. Grisham, please give us another Lacy Stoltz book soon. With the future she has planned, there would be many ways for her to stumble upon another legal dilemma to untangle.
A big thank you to Doubleday and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
10. KARINA review The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
“He reached and grabbed one strand of rope and quickly looped it around her neck. He held both ends with his hands and applied a little pressure. Jeri recoiled but couldn’t get away. He was practically on top of her, his face two feet from hers.” (PG. 292)
So the library wants this back ASAP. I am overdue by a few days and had to read this, like quick, especially if I am going to get a quote out of it… But it turned out not to be a problem because it was so good. This political thriller was very thrilling. I am a John Grisham fan. The only thing I didn’t realize was that this was a second in a series starring Lacy Stoltz. I found the diversity in the book refreshing, natural.
The idea of having a judge be a serial killer is a damn good one. I mean, what a great premise, that if anyone COULD actually get away with murder it would be a judge. And not just any regular old judge, a judge that remembers slights and is patiently stalking his victims for 20+ years leaving no trail, no forensic evidence, not even fingerprints. But like all serial killers comes the one mistake that becomes their downfall…. And all because he himself is being stalked…
Grisham did a great job of making lead female characters. I could actually believe they were women talking. He didn’t make them into desperate horny beer guzzling Bees. They were normal and professional. Cringy stereotypes seem to be the modern typecast.
III. [Quote] The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2) by John Grisham
The best book quotes from The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
“A psychopath has a severe mental disorder and antisocial behavior. A sociopath is a psychopath on steroids. Not exactly medical definitions but close enough.”
“The fear of getting caught was not driven by the fear of paying the price. Rather, it was the fear of having to stop.”
“She could not imagine finding the patience to raise kids in the age of cell phones, drugs, casual sex, social media, and everything else on the Internet.”
“fierce obsession with anything, and especially something as traumatic as a murder, was not healthy. Denise and Alfred had discussed it over the years, but not recently. They worried about Jeri, though they could do nothing to change her.”
“Pointing the finger at Ross Bannick was a terrifying act, not because she was afraid of being wrong, but because she feared the man himself.”
“She was the only girl he had ever loved. It ended abruptly when she ditched him for a football player. He carried the wounds for six years until he caught her and killed her. Only then had his pain suddenly vanished, his broken heart was healed. The score was even.”
“Why get cute and drop them off in a postal box to be sent to my daughter’s apartment? He had to know that we’d track them and find them within hours. This was a Friday. There was no way the two smartphones would sit undiscovered until Monday.”
“Wow. Quite unusual. Narcissistic, split personality, able to live in one world as a respected, productive member of society while spending his off-hours plotting the next kill. It’ll be hard to nail this guy. Unless.” Allie said, “Unless he makes a mistake, right?”
“Once again she marveled at Jeri’s research and tenaciousness, and managed a chuckle at Herman Gray’s comment about her being needed by the FBI.”
“So, how did you manage to get the story about Bannick and Eileen? It’s all hearsay and third-hand and urban legend, all remembered and told by a bunch of drunk rich kids. Right?” “For the most part, yes.”
“is widely believed that he killed as many as one hundred young women, but it has been impossible to confirm. He often killed several in one day and even abducted his victims from the same location. He gets my vote as the sickest of a very sick bunch.”
“Lacy had no idea of their frustration. For five months now, every lead had gone nowhere. Every Crime Stopper’s tip had done nothing but waste more time. Every new theory had eventually petered out. Verno’s murder was so carefully planned that there had to be a reason for it, but motive eluded them. Little was known of his unremarkable past. On the other hand, they were convinced that Dunwoody had simply picked the wrong spot.”
“I don’t want to, Bannick. I’ve lived in your miserable life for so long and I never dreamed I would one day be able to have a chat like this and tell you what a miserable scumbag I think you are. You’re a coward. Your crimes took no courage.”
“All lawyers knew of him, and when Lacy had decided to sue over the staged car wreck that injured her and killed Hugo Hatch, her former colleague, she really had no choice.”
“At the outset, I want to say that we would not be here if not for you. Your detective work over the past twenty years is nothing short of brilliant. It’s a miracle, actually, and I’ve never encountered anything like”
“He had lived most of his adult life in fear of arrest, of warrants, of detectives, of getting caught. The fear had so thoroughly consumed him for so long that his daily routines included all manner of cautionary moves. And he remained, so far, ahead of the bloodhounds.”
“Now you’re trying to think like Bannick. He had a death wish, which is not unusual for serial killers. They can’t stop what they’re doing on their own volition, so they want someone else to stop them. The ruined reputation. The disgrace to the memory of his parents. The loss of everything he had worked for.”
“Twenty-two years later the case is even colder and the police have all but given up. Once we realized that they were getting nowhere, I vowed to try everything to find his killer.”
“He drove through the quiet village of Antioch without seeing another human,”
“He presided over murder trials, studied forensics and knew more about the science than the experts, and, most importantly, he knew how much evidence was needed to convict. A helluva lot! Beyond a reasonable doubt. Far more than any low-paid cop had been able to find along his graveyard trail.”
“He felt like his victims were now crawling out of their graves and lining up, zombie-like, to come after him. He was living in a state of stunned disbelief, his thoughts a mush of rampant flashes, his debates raging over strategies that changed by the hour.”
“Look, Gunther, it’s great to see you, as always. But the last thing I want to hear today is a steady stream of bitching about my life. Car included. Got that?” “Wow, Sis. You wake up on the wrong side?” “I did.”
“Oh yeah. A lot of fun. Staring across the table at five lawyers, all scheming to pounce on every word, every syllable, salivating as they dream of getting more of your money. Why can’t your lawyer get the case settled? It should’ve been over months ago.”
“Damned right I am. He’s too smart to commit a murder and leave it alone. For twenty years I’ve operated under the assumption that he’s back there, watching, still covering his tracks.”
“With a steady supply guaranteed, the judge really went off the deep end and things deteriorated. He couldn’t do his job, couldn’t sit on the bench for more than fifteen minutes without calling a recess for a quick snort. The lawyers were whispering but, as usual, didn’t want to squeal. A court reporter was watching closely and knew the dirt.”
“Any lawyer whose reputation and gossip dwelled on her bad makeup and tight clothing as opposed to her legal skills was doomed to toil in the netherworld of the profession.”
“You’re willing to just sit by and push papers around your desk while this guy literally gets away with murder and keeps on killing.”
“She had read somewhere that we often grow to admire, even love, the very thing we so obsessively hate. It can become a part of our life, and we grow to rely on it, to need it. It defines us”
“know who’s at fault and I’m not blaming you. But it’s hard to do our work with weak leadership, sometimes no leadership, and fading support from the legislature. The Governor couldn’t care less what we do.”
“He loved the gamesmanship. He was a sociopath who killed for revenge, but he tried on the planning and execution, and the perfection of his crimes.”
Excerpted from The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2)
Chapter 1 – The Judge’s List
The call came through the office land line, through a system that was at least twenty years old and had fought off all technological advances. It was taken by a tattooed receptionist named Felicity, a new girl who would be gone before she fully understood the phones. They were all leaving, it seemed, especially the clerical help. Turnover was ridiculous. Morale was low. The Board on Judicial Conduct had just seen its budget chopped for the fourth straight year by a legislature that hardly knew it existed.
Felicity managed to route the call down the hall to the cluttered desk of Lacy Stoltz. “There’s a call on line three,” she announced.
“Who is it?” Lacy asked.
“She wouldn’t say.”
There were so many ways to respond. At that moment, though, Lacy was bored, and she did not wish to waste the emotional energy necessary to properly chastise the kid and set her straight. Routines and protocols were crumbling. Office discipline was waning as BJC spiraled into a leaderless mess.
As a veteran, the veteran, it was important to set an example. “Thanks,” she said and punched the blinking light. “Lacy Stoltz.”
“Good afternoon, Ms. Stoltz. Do you have a moment?”
Female, educated, no hint of an accent, mid-forties, give or take three years. Lacy always played the voice game. “And to whom do I have the pleasure?”
“My name is Margie for now, but I use other ones.”
Lacy was amused and almost chuckled. “Well, at least you’re up front about it. It normally takes me some time to work through the aliases.”
Anonymous callers were routine. People with gripes about judges were always cautious and hesitant to come forward and take on the system. Almost all feared retaliation from the powers on high.
Margie said, “I’d like to talk to you, somewhere private.”
“My office is private, if you’d like.”
“Oh no,” she snapped, apparently frightened at the thought. “That won’t work. You know the Siler Building, next door?”
“Of course,” Lacy said as she stood and looked out her window at the Siler Building, one of several nondescript government addresses in downtown Tallahassee.
Margie said, “There’s a coffee bar on the ground floor. Can we meet there?”
“I suppose. When?”
“Now. I’m on my second latte.”
“Slow down. Give me a few minutes. And you’ll recognize me?”
“Yes. You’re on the website. I’m in the rear, left side.”
Lacy’s office was indeed private. The one to her left was empty, vacated by an ex-colleague who’d moved on to a bigger agency. Across the hall an office had been converted into a makeshift storage closet. She walked toward Felicity and ducked into the office of Darren Trope, a two-year man already prowling for another job.
“You busy?” she asked as she interrupted whatever he was doing.
“Not really.” It didn’t matter what he was or was not doing. If Lacy needed anything, Darren belonged to her.
“Need a favor. I’m stepping over to Siler to meet a stranger who just admitted that she is using a fake name.”
“Oh, I love the cloak-and-dagger. Sure beats sitting here reading about some judge who made lewd comments to a witness.”
“How lewd?”
“Pretty graphic.”
“Any photos, videos?”
“Not yet.”
“Let me know if you get them. So, mind stepping over in fifteen minutes and taking a picture?”
“Sure. No problem. No idea who she is?”
“None whatsoever.”
Lacy left the building, took her time walking around the block, enjoyed a moment of cool air, and strolled into the lobby of the Siler Building. It was almost 4:00 p.m. and there were no other customers drinking coffee at that hour. Margie was at a small table in the rear, to the left. She waved quickly as though someone might notice and she didn’t want to get caught. Lacy smiled and walked toward her.
African American, mid-forties, professional, attractive, educated, slacks and heels and dressed nicer than Lacy, though around BJC these days any and all attire was allowed. The old boss wanted coats and ties and hated jeans, but he had retired two years ago and took most of the rules with him.
Lacy passed the counter where the barista was loafing with both elbows stuck on the Formica, hands cradling her pink phone that had her thoroughly fascinated. She did not look up, never thought about greeting a customer, and Lacy decided to pass on more caffeine anyway.
Without standing, Margie stuck out a hand and said, “Nice to meet you. Would you like some coffee?”
Lacy smiled, shook her hand, and sat across the square table. “No thanks. And it’s Margie, right?”
“For now.”
“Okay, we’re off to a bad start. Why are you using an alias?”
“My story will take hours to tell and I’m not sure you want to hear it.”
“Then why bother?”
“Please, Ms. Stoltz.”
“Lacy.”
“Please, Lacy. You have no idea the emotional trauma I’ve been through trying to get to this point in my life. I’m a wreck right now, okay?”
She seemed fine, though a bit on edge. Perhaps it was the second latte. Her eyes darted right and left. They were pretty and surrounded by large purple frames. The lenses were probably not needed. The glasses were part of the outfit, a subtle disguise.
Lacy said, “I’m not sure what to say. Why don’t you start talking and maybe we’ll get somewhere?”
“I’ve read about you.” She reached down into a backpack and deftly pulled out a file. “The Indian casino case, not long ago. You caught a judge skimming and put her away. One reporter described it as the largest bribery scandal in the history of American jurisprudence.” The file was two inches thick and gave every impression of being immaculately organized.
Lacy noted the use of the word “jurisprudence.” Odd for a layperson.
“It was a big case,” she said, feigning modesty.
Margie smiled and said, “Big? You broke up a crime syndicate, nailed the judge, and sent a bunch of people to prison. All are still there, I believe.”
“True, but it was far from a one-girl takedown. The FBI was heavily involved. It was a complicated case and some people were killed.”
“Including your colleague, Mr. Hugo Hatch.”
“Yes, including Hugo. Curious. Why all of this research about me?”
Margie folded her hands and rested them on top of the file, which she had not opened. Her index fingers were shaking slightly. She looked at the entrance and glanced around again, though no one had entered, no one had left, no one had moved, not even the barista who was lost in the clouds. She took a sip from her straw. If it really was her second latte, it had barely been touched. She had used the word “trauma.” Admitted to being a “wreck.” Lacy realized the woman was frightened.
Margie said, “Oh, I’m not sure it’s research. Just some stuff off the Internet. Everything’s out there, you know.”
Lacy smiled and tried to be patient. “I’m not sure we’re getting anywhere.”
“Your job is to investigate judges who are accused of wrongdoing, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“And you’ve been doing it for how long?”
“I’m sorry. Why is this relevant?”
“Please.”
“Twelve years.” Giving that number was like admitting defeat. It sounded so long.
“How do you get involved in a case?” Margie asked, bouncing around.
Lacy took a deep breath and reminded herself to be patient. People with complaints who got this far were often rattled. She smiled and said, “Well, typically a person with a complaint against a judge will contact us and we’ll have a meeting. If the gripe appears to have some merit, then the person will file a formal complaint, which we keep locked up for forty-five days while we take a look. We call it an assessment. Nine times out of ten that’s as far as it gets and the complaint is dismissed. If we find possible wrongdoing, then we notify the judge and he or she has thirty days to respond. Usually, everybody lawyers up. We investigate, have hearings, bring in witnesses, the works.”
As she spoke, Darren strolled in alone, disturbed the barista by ordering decaf, waited on it while ignoring the two women, then took it to a table on the other side of the room where he opened a laptop and began what appeared to be some serious work. Without giving the slightest hint, he aimed the laptop’s camera at Lacy’s back and Margie’s face, zoomed in for a close shot, and began filming. He took a video and some still shots.
If Margie noticed him it was not apparent.
She listened intently to Lacy and asked, “How often is a judge removed from office?”
Again, why is this relevant? “Not very often, fortunately. We have jurisdiction over one thousand judges and the vast majority are honest, hardworking professionals. Most of the complaints we see are just not that serious. Disgruntled litigants who didn’t get what they wanted. A lot of divorce cases. A lot of lawyers mad because they lost. We stay busy, but for the most part the conflicts are resolved.”
She made the job sound boring, and, after twelve years, it rather felt that way.
Margie listened carefully, her fingertips tapping the file. She took a deep breath and asked, “The person who files the complaint, is he or she always identified?”
Lacy thought for a second and said, “Eventually, yes. It’s quite rare for the complaining party to remain anonymous.”
“Why?”
“Because the complainant usually knows the facts of the case and needs to testify against the judge. It’s hard to nail a judge when the people he ticked off are afraid to come forward. Are you afraid?”
The very word seemed to frighten her. “Yes, you could say that,” she admitted.
Lacy frowned and appeared bored. “Look, let’s cut to the chase here. How serious is the behavior that you’re talking about?”
Margie closed her eyes and managed to say, “Murder.”
She immediately opened them and glanced around to see if anyone had overheard. There was no one close enough to hear anything except Lacy, who absorbed this with the hard-boiled skepticism she had developed after so many years on the job. She reminded herself again to be patient. When she looked at Margie’s eyes again they were wet.
Lacy leaned in a bit closer and softly asked, “Are you suggesting that one of our sitting judges has committed a murder?”
Margie bit her lip and shook her head. “I know he has.”
“May I ask how you know this?”
“My father was one of his victims.”
Lacy inhaled this and glanced around herself. “Victims? As in more than one?”
“Yes. I believe my father was his second victim. I’m not sure which number, but I’m certain of his guilt.”
“Interesting.”
“That’s an understatement. How many complaints have you had about judges killing people?”
“Well, none.”
“Exactly. In the history of America, how many judges have been convicted of murder while on the bench?”
“I’ve never heard of one.”
“Exactly. Zero. So don’t dismiss this as something ‘interesting.’ ”
“Didn’t mean to offend.”
Across the way, Darren finished his important business and left. Neither woman acknowledged his departure.
Margie said, “No offense taken. I’m not going any further in this coffee bar. I have a lot of information that I would like to share with you and no one else, but not here.”
Lacy had encountered her share of nuts and unbalanced souls with boxes and paper sacks filled with documents that clearly proved that some sleazeball up on the bench was thoroughly corrupt. Almost always, after a few minutes of face-to-face interaction, she could reach her verdict and began making plans to route the complaint to the dismissal drawer. Over the years she had learned to read people, though with many of the wackos that came her way a quick evaluation wasn’t much of a challenge.
Margie, or whoever, was neither a nut nor a wacko, nor an unbalanced soul. She was onto something and she was frightened.
Lacy said, “Okay. Where do we go next?”
“What is next?”
“Look, you contacted me. Do you want to talk or not? I don’t play games and I don’t have time to pry information out of you or any other person who wants to complain about a judge. I waste a lot of time cajoling information out of people who call me in the first place. I go down a dead-end trail once a month. Are you talking or not?”
Margie was crying again and wiping her cheeks. Lacy studied her with as much compassion as possible, but she was also willing to leave the table and never come back.
However, she was intrigued by the idea of murder. Part of her daily grind around BJC was suffering through the mundane and frivolous gripes of unhappy people with small problems and little to lose. A murder by a sitting judge seemed too sensational to believe.
Finally, Margie said, “I have a room at the Ramada on East Gaines. We could meet there after hours. But you have to come alone.”
Lacy nodded as if she’d anticipated this. “With precautions. We have a rule that prohibits me from conducting an initial meeting with a complaining party off premises and alone. I would have to bring another investigator, one of my colleagues.”
“Like Mr. Trope over there?” Margie asked, nodding at Darren’s empty chair.
Lacy slowly turned around to see what in the world she was talking about as she tried desperately to think of a response.
Margie continued, “It’s your website, okay? Smiling faces of all staff.” From her briefcase she removed an 8×10 color photo of herself and slid it across the table. “Here, with best wishes, a current color mug of myself that’s far better than the ones Mr. Trope just stole.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m sure he’s already run my pic through your facial recognition software and he’s found nothing. I’m in nobody’s data bank.”
“What are you talking about?” Margie was dead-on but Lacy was rattled and not ready to come clean.
“Oh, I think you know. You come alone or you’ll never see me again. You’re the most experienced investigator in your office and at this moment your boss is only a temp. You can probably do whatever you want.”
“I wish it were that easy.”
“Let’s call it an after-work drink, that’s all. We’ll meet in the bar and if it goes well we can go upstairs to my room and talk with even more privacy.”
“I cannot go to your room. It’s against our procedures. If a complaint is filed and it becomes necessary to meet in private, then I can do so. Someone has to know where I am, at least initially.”
“Fair enough. What time?”
“How about six?”
“I’ll be in the back corner, right hand side, and I’ll be alone, same as you. No wires, recorders, secret cameras, no colleagues pretending to drink as they film away. And say hello to Darren. Maybe one day I’ll have the pleasure. Deal?”
….
Note: Above are quotes and excerpts from the book “The Judge’s List (The Whistler Book 2) by John Grisham”. If you find it interesting and useful, don’t forget to buy paper books to support the Author and Publisher!
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