Opinion: Judge will be missed

Judge James Weir, pictured in 2011.

IT SAYS a lot about Judge James Weir that a prisoner passed on his condolences to the court yesterday, after hearing of the judge's sudden death.

Chances are that man had appeared in front of Judge Weir at some stage. Who knows, he could even have been jailed by him.

As his colleagues have told us, Judge Weir was a fair but frank judge, who wasn't afraid to come down firmly on those he believed deserved it.

Having spent many hours sitting at the media table in Judge Weir's courtroom, I saw him in action on many occasions.

He didn't hold back when a defendant, someone in the public gallery, lawyer or member of the media stepped out of line or failed to treat his courtroom with the respect he demanded.

He would let rip, reducing a courtroom to silence. From a journalist's point of view his colourful, no-holds-barred quotes made for great stories.

But he also had a smile and a twinkle in his eye, and the emotion was because he saw the consequences of criminal behaviour every day. There was a compassion there. Perhaps that's what that prisoner yesterday remembered.

His sudden death over the weekend, in such a horrific manner, has left the Rotorua and wider legal fraternity in shock.

While he hadn't sat in the district court since last April, he had been an integral fixture in the Rotorua courthouse for 15years before that.

He hadn't ruled out a return to the Rotorua District Court once his stint at the Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority ended.

Sadly, that will now never happen. He will be missed.