If you were privileged to know Judge Richard G. Kopf at all beyond the blawg posts or comment section replies, you were fucking spoiled.
You had the ear of a federal Judge who would give you his 100% no bullshit opinions on anything and everything. If he felt like he could impart some wisdom in the process, so much the better.
One of the first times I emailed Judge Kopf outside of Fault Lines was to tell him I found the University of Nebraska’s football team’s gesture of wearing “Mountain Strong” decals on their helmets when they played UT in the Music City Bowl back in 2016 a very classy move, honoring those who lost their lives and homes in the Gatlinburg wildfires.
This was Judge Kopf’s response:
Chris, the verdict is still out on Mike Riley the coach, but not the person.
It is likely the Vols. will blow us out. Our first string quarterback is out, our all-world senior safety decided not attend his only classes this semester and thus is out academically, and our all-universe wide receiver is busted up and out. I’m thinking a nap might be in the making rather than watch you all replicate the Battle of New Orleans.
I don’t remember the game’s outcome but I’ve saved that email because it still makes me smile. And this next story is a doozy. I’ve kept this to myself ever since he told it to me because I promised I would and it wasn’t my story to tell. After consulting with my mean-ass editor, I bring you all my favorite Judge Kopf story, told by the man himself.
One afternoon when I had a free moment I emailed the Judge and asked him if there was anything he saw in pleadings that pissed him off. I expected some sort of gripe about citations or pleadings lacking focus. This is what I got:
As for bullshit pleadings, I will give you example. There is a guy. His name is [REDACTED]*. He is constantly in and out of prison. Mr. [REDACTED] is [redacted, but it was a very unflattering description]. He files reams of paper. It got so bad we limited him to one law suit a month. The Court of Appeals said that was fine. See here.**
Anyway, some years ago he filed a motion entitled “Fuck You.” It was addressed to me. He referred to me as “KKKKopf.”
Anyway, when I got the motion I sent an order to the Clerk’s office. It read as follows:
I am in receipt of Mr. [REDACTED]’s ‘Fuck You’ motion. After careful consideration,
IT IS ORDERED that the ‘Fuck You’ motion is denied with a hearty you too!
KKKKopf, United States District Judge
Unfortunately, the Clerk’s office refused to file my order. They pleaded with me to withdraw it and file something more mundane. I am ashamed to say I relented.
Hope you guys enjoyed the story. There’s never going to be another jurist like “The Notorious RGK”*** and that’s a good thing. I’m pretty sure the mold got broken when he was made.
Godspeed, Judge. As for the rest of you, we’ll see you next week!
*I’ve purposefully redacted certain information to keep a defendant’s identity anonymous because this is a Judge Kopf story. It was a really unflattering description though. Trust me.
**Yes, Judge Kopf included citations in casual emails.
***I never knew if he liked this nickname or not. I’m hoping he did.
**Yes, Judge Kopf included citations in casual emails.
A real mensch.
Not only was Judge Kopf honest, he went out of his way to make sure you knew he was telling the truth.
Few men seem to be able to do that these days.
Just read the Jan. 22 press release. Yes, we mourn RGK’s passing. We knew him and interacted with him on this very blawg. We had some petty dispute over something which we do not now remember. We believe he conceded our points.
Upon my request, you gave me his email address and a stern warning to be polite. We did email him, and he responded in short order. Ya know, there a hundred lawyers, non-profits and office holders who/which have failed to respond to my pleadings. Sen. John Kerry for example. That a busy judge would take the time to communicate with citizen F. Lee Billy on the East coast, whom he did not know, is both remarkable and exemplary. Yes, he was quite the mensch. Thank you.
He sounds like the kind of judge that should be on the Supreme Court but couldn’t get nominated because of their blunt honesty.
BTW I had forgotten as well. UT won 38-24 in what was the high-water mark for Butch Jones. The wheels came off his wagon the next year.
Oh boy was Judge Kopf honest to a fault. I remember an exchange he had once with another Fault Lines contributor who make a snarky comment to him in jest. Judge responded with something like this:
“Listen here you little shit. I am old, in a bad mood and I have to sentence someone this afternoon. And because you made me grumpier they’re really going to have a bad day in my courtroom.”
I think my first correspondence with Judge Kopf was shortly after he did an interview for Fault X Lines (he was so proud of you guys for that effort). There was a line about transparency in what he wrote that I wanted to thank him for. In subsequent emails I noted how the public will always think about sending this message to their congressman or that message to the President — but no one ever writes to a Judge. It’s as if the Judiciary, which seems to impact our lives quite a bit, somehow feels set apart from communicating to or with the public (unless it’s through an opinion in a case).
To my astonishment, he not only seemed to care about the thoughts (he said in reply: “I believe the federal courts should be as transparent as possible so that the people understand that we judges are not politicians in black robes!” – RGK), but he was happy to engage in pretty much any topic that Judges deal with.
I remember asking him about the sentencing of Ulbricht (as it’s back in the news, I wonder what he’d have to say now). He had a lot to say back then about how Judges approach sentencing (how they sometimes get it way wrong) and also, which I will never forget — how Judges change over time — to the point that what they may do at the beginning of their tenure, they would never do, by the end of their career.
I remember one question about recusal. I had just seen a lengthy order on why recusal wasn’t necessary by a Judge I knew — and asked Judge Kopf about it. He didn’t seem to have an issue critiquing where warranted, as long as you were sincere.
I don’t recall the exact words he used, but the general gist was that a newbie judge may feel compelled to explain why they shouldn’t recuse, whereas a seasoned one won’t care and will just pass it on to someone else.
It’s kinda crazy to have a Federal Judge available to answer questions in any day and age — but like CLS said, pretty sure the mold got broken when he was made.
You will certainly be missed. And per your wishes, I will occasionally throw a mouse for the mean-ass cat loving editor to play with, in perpetuity.
As I recall, he was one of the few bold and forthright enough to point out that the ABA “analysis” on ethics of judicial membership in politicized organizations precluded his further association with the ABA.
That was a “hearty ‘you too’.”
I had the extreme pleasure of meeting His Honor back when I toured the University of Nebraska’s Law School. He took me to dinner at a sports bar near the hotel all of us there for admitted students day were staying, in the hopes of convincing me to attend there.
Alas, the criminal law clinic was done through the DA’s office. That was a hard no for me, and he understood that completely. What followed was about an hour or so of us just chatting; mostly about other schools I had applied or been accepted to and would be touring, but also about his life.
He told me a great story about how at the end of law school, right before his last set of final exams, he was wandering the mostly empty halls. A professor saw him and called His Honor into their office, and said something close to the following. “I know that look on your face. You’re scared were going to figure out that you don’t belong here. Well, you do, or you wouldn’t have made it to this point. Study, relax, and you’ll be OK.”
I think about that a lot when I start to get worried people might realize I don’t know what I’m doing.
At the end we had a short disagreement about whether I would be allowed to pay for my own food and drink, up until he busted out his Grandpa Voice and I was forced to relent.
Judge Kopf was a hell of a good person.