Judge James Edwin Horton Cumberland Class of 1899 and his Remarkable Judicial Courage

On Friday afternoon, I will be in the Morgan County Courthouse in Decatur, Alabama to participate in a ceremony honoring one of the most courageous judges in American history, Judge James Edwin Horton. I am particularly proud to participate because Judge James E. Horton is a Cumberland graduate from the class of 1899. Judge Horton was an Alabama circuit judge who presided over the trial of one of the Scottsboro boys, Haywood Patterson. The Scottsboro boys were wrongly convicted of the rape in the 1930's amid an atmosphere of violence and racial hatred.

Judge Horton presided over the Patterson trial and received universal praise for the way he handled a most difficult situation. Despite the weakness of the state's case, however, a jury convicted Patterson and sentenced him to death. Throughout the trial, Judge Horton was concerned about the state's case and the credibility of the complaining witnesses. He also was concerned about the lack of corroboration. On June 22, 1933, Judge Horton took the bench to announce his ruling on a motion for new trial. He then addressed the packed courtoom and explained why he was setting aside the jury verdict of guilt. It was one of the most courageous judicial acts in all of American law. Judge Horton knew that by setting aside the verdict, he would be ending his judicial career because the citizens of the surrounding counties would be outraged. To him, that simply did not matter. The rule of law was more important.

The eloquent words with which he began his oral opinion on the new trial motion speak volumes about what the rule of law means. He said Social order is based on law, and its perpetuity on its fair and impartial administration. Deliberate injustice is more fatal to the one who imposes it than to the one on whom it is imposed. Judge Horton is a shining role model for all of us. We are at a time in this country when the judiciary and the rule of law is constantly under attack. All of us should remember Judge Horton's favorite phrase which he learned at his mother's knee - "Justitia fiat coelum ruat" - Let justice be done though the heavens may fall."