One day in my courtroom, a man arrived with his car booted because of unpaid parking tickets. His shoulders were heavy with worry and exhaustion. Between working long hours and raising his 8-year-old son, he told me he simply hadn’t found the time to pay his fines. “I had every intention of paying them, Your Honor,” he said quietly, “I just needed a little more time.”
I looked into his eyes and saw more than just a man overwhelmed by bills. I saw a father who was doing everything he could to provide for his child, a man who was making sacrifices most don’t notice. What stood out was his dedication to his son, despite the chaos around him. He was present, even when life felt impossible.
“You’re a responsible man,” I told him. “Responsibility isn’t just about paying tickets on time. It’s in the way you raise your son.”
We talked about his boy, and his face lit up. The little guy wanted to be an astronaut. The father had even bought him a space suit and a telescope — small tools to nurture big dreams. That simple fact touched me deeply. Supporting a child’s dreams is one of the greatest gifts a parent can give.
So I made my decision. Instead of making him pay those fines right away, I told him, “Use that money to keep investing in your son’s future. Buy those telescopes. Encourage those dreams.”
Justice, I realized, isn’t just about enforcing rules. It’s about recognizing the heart behind every story — the love, the hope, the fight to build something better.
Sometimes, kindness and compassion are the truest forms of justice.