I’ve Said It Before — The Robe Doesn’t Make You Honorable

I’ve written before — more than once — that I no longer use the phrase “Your Honor.”
Not because I don’t respect the rule of law.
But because far too many who wear the robe have forgotten what honor actually requires.
Now comes the latest example.
According to the New York Post, Rockland County Supreme Court Justice Sherri Eisenpress is stepping down after findings by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct. Vacations with attorneys who appeared before her. Group text threads with off-color jokes and sexually explicit images. Cases presided over without disclosure of personal relationships.
And we’re supposed to pretend this is just a lapse in judgment?
I’ve posted before about judges who intimidate, belittle, and hide behind procedure. About the quiet arrogance that can settle into a courtroom when no one dares challenge the bench. About how the symbolism of the robe has too often been misused as a shield instead of a standard.
This isn’t about one trip. Or one text thread.
It’s about culture.
When a judge is socializing in tropical destinations with lawyers who later stand before her arguing cases, the issue isn’t friendship. It’s power. It’s access. It’s the appearance — and perhaps the reality — of insiders and outsiders in a system that is supposed to be blind.
Justice isn’t supposed to look like a private club.
The Commission exists to protect the integrity of the judiciary. But the real damage is done long before a resignation letter is signed. It’s done when ordinary citizens begin to believe that the courtroom is rigged. That outcomes are influenced by relationships. That fairness is negotiable.
And once public trust erodes, it’s almost impossible to restore.
I’ve seen honor displayed in quiet courage — in people who stand up in courtrooms despite the odds. I’ve also seen its absence, when authority is used to intimidate rather than uphold the law.
The robe doesn’t confer honor.
Conduct does.
And until the judiciary understands that respect is earned — not commanded — stories like this will keep surfacing.
The system doesn’t need blind loyalty.
It needs reform.