Vast power is entrusted to federal judges. They never stand for election. Once appointed, they serve for life.
Federal judges can inflict great trauma with improper decisions.
Judge White is the most anti-death penalty judge on the Missouri Supreme Court. He has voted against the death penalty more often than any other judge. Further, he has dissented more often than any other judge in capital cases, and has been the judge most likely to dissent alone. In State v. Johnson, only Judge White could find a reason to reverse the capital sentence imposed on Jim Johnson. This brutal cop killer was sentenced to death for the murders of Cooper County Sheriff Charles Smith, Moniteau County Deputy Les Roark, Miller County Deputy Sandra Wilson, and Pam Jones, the wife of Moniteau County Sheriff Kenny Jones.