Full Description
2023 National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize Finalist
In Judgment and Mercy, Martin J. Siegel examines the complex life and career of Irving Kaufman, the judge infamous for sentencing Julius and Ethel Rosenberg to death for atomic espionage in 1951.
While many saw the Rosenberg affair as a McCarthyite stain on American justice, Kaufman later became a leading progressive, issuing key rulings on school desegregation, prison reform, and free speech.
Yet the Rosenberg case haunted him. Decades later, revelations of judicial misconduct led to renewed protests and calls for impeachment. His Supreme Court ambitions faded, and family tragedy deepened his suffering.
Absorbingly told, Judgment and Mercy reveals a judge both ambitious and tormented, exploring his influence on American history and the long shadow of a decision that shaped his legacy.
Contents
Prologue: The Funeral
1. Isidore Mortem
2. Demon Boy Prosecutor
3. A Dream Come True
4. At Home on the Bench and Park Avenue
5. The Trial of the Century
6. Worse Than Murder
7. Immortality
8. Beaten by the Harvards
9. Apalachin and the Little Rock of the North
10. Elevation and Descent
11. The Forgotten Man
12. Hippieland
13. The Most Cherished Tenet
14. Annus Horribilis
15. Some Form of Justice
16. Keep the Beacon Burning
Epilogue: "I Can't Believe I'm Going to Die"
