Justice Matters: Fourth of July is perfect time to celebrate creation of
our nation, courts
26 June 2014
The following reflections of Missouri Chief Justice Mary R. Russell make up
her most recent Justice Matters column.
It is that time of year for fireworks and picnics and parades with children
waving the American flag. It also is time to honor the birth of our nation
on the Fourth of July, celebrating our nation’s declaration of independence
in 1776 and the creation of a new government in which the people divided
authority among three separate but equal branches – the executive, the
legislative and the judicial. This holiday is special for me for two
reasons. First, as a member of the judiciary, I experience daily the wisdom
of our forefathers in their creation of our government, in particular the
creation of courts in our system of democracy. Second, my
great-great-great-great-grandfather – Samuel W. Rhodes, who later settled
in Callaway County, Missouri – fought in the Revolutionary War while still
a colonist in Virginia.
It is important to remember the ideals for which our forefathers fought –
including the ideal of justice. In the Declaration of Independence, our
forefathers complained, among their grievances against Britain’s King
George, that he: obstructed the administration of justice, made judges
dependent on his will alone, deprived the colonists of the benefits of
trial by jury and transported the colonists “beyond Seas to be tried for
pretended offenses.” And so it perhaps is not surprising that, when
establishing the new constitution for the fledgling nation several years
later, our forefathers listed “establish Justice” second only behind “in
Order to form a more perfect Union.”
To ensure the abuses of King George would not happen again, the new
government established the constitution – not a king – as the ultimate
authority and divided governmental power among three branches of
government. The founders designed the judiciary as a forum where people
peaceably can resolve their disputes and where impartial judges who are not
beholden to a president or governor can decide the matters before them
based on the law and the facts. In our courts, everyone has to follow the
rules established in our constitution.
Thanks to our forefathers declaring their independence from England 238
years ago, we now have fair and impartial courts available to help all
citizens make sure there is equal justice for all. And thanks to the
hundreds of Revolutionary War soldiers buried in Missouri, including my
ancestor, who fought to ensure that we have a superior system of justice in
our country. I am honored to be a member of the judicial branch that my
great-great-great-great-grandfather fought to establish.
So let us celebrate together this Fourth of July, as John Adams envisioned
in a letter to his wife, Abigail, about the Declaration of Independence:
“It ought to be commemorated … with pomp and parade, … bells, bonfires and
illuminations from one end of this continent to the other from this time
forward forever more.”
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