MERCIFUL JUSTICE

Bernie is out of jail.

The title character in Richard Linklater’s small but popular movie “Bernie” has been released from prison on $10,000 bond. He will live now in Linklater’s garage apartment in Austin, far away in distance and culture from East Texas, where his conviction for the murder of the cranky and stingy Carthage socialite, Marjorie Nugent, took place in 1997.

The movie, starring Jack Black, Shirley McLaine and Matthew McConaughey, pictured Bernie Tiede as a sympathetic figure. He was a mortician by profession and a friend to many in that small town. When Nugent was widowed, he began a weird and complicated relationship with her that included her signing over her estate to him but also subjecting him to levels of emotional abuse that were factors in his shooting her four times in the back and stuffing her body in a freezer.

Recent revelations about that abuse, and new revelations of abuse he suffered in childhood, have contributed to the judge’s decision to mitigate punishment and set him free under conditions of supervision.

So did justice or mercy prevail in the end?

Seems the attitudes of people in Carthage have turned against Bernie over time, although in the immediate aftermath of the murder and trial, they were generally supportive of the man who had become a generous benefactor with his victim’s money.

Justice and mercy live in creative tension. Justice without mercy is coldhearted; mercy without justice is softheaded.

The Bible weighs in for both justice and mercy. And the application of them among the communities of Israel and the church over time proves the need for compassionate judgment. For example, the Old Testa-

Mercy

ment rule of “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” was an improvement over the culture of disproportionate revenge that created generational cycles of violence. But proportionality was often still out of whack, since capital punishment was not limited to the crime of murder but could include things like the stoning of a chronically disobedient son. Gratefully, the community rarely carried out such permissible punishment, as the cause of mercy trumped the claim of justice.

Jesus taught caution about meting out judgment, lest we ourselves be judged by the same standards. He urged that mercy prevail in order that restoration rather than retribution might rule our relationships.

The law makes distinctions for those who take another life. Homicide can be first, second or third degree murder; it can be manslaughter; or it can be justifiable homicide (which is not a crime), all depending upon the circumstances. We make judgments that include motivation and situation.

This could lead to lost accountability for bad behavior. It could undermine responsibility. It could endanger the community by exposing it to future risk. All those “coulds” could be true.

But mercy also could give hope. It could create conditions for productive lives. It could produce forgiveness that relieves the burden of guilt and teaches responsibility.

Reasons are not excuses. There is no excuse for murder. There may be, however, mitigating reasons that make it understandable, albeit still inexcusable.

We all know people who need our best judgment and great mercy. Come to think of it, we ourselves are such people. Thank God none of us truly get what we deserve from God. And there begins the lesson …

On April 26, there was a summit meeting for the White Rock Lake area that was sponsored by the White Rock Partnership (WRP). WRP, a group of long-time community volunteers in East Dallas brought together by Lakewood resident and long-time civic volunteer David Pittman, is dedicated to enhancing quality of life in the White Rock area, whether through beautification efforts or the improvement of community relations and public service. For the Summit, all neighborhood association presidents and crime watch chairs from the neighborhoods that are a part of the White Rock Lake area were invited to participate. The meeting included presentations by current Dallas City Council Member Sheffie Kadane, former City Council member Gary Griffith, North East Division Police Chief Andy Acord, Park Board District 9 representative Gerry Worrall, and was moderated by Gloria Tarpley, current District 9 representative and Chair of the City Planning Commission. It continued with brief comments from each of the attendees in which they discussed their particular neighborhood group’s recent successes and current challenges.

People

George Boyd possessed the precision and curiosity of a fine hunter, but not the killer instinct. When he captured his prey, it was with his zoom lens. His trophies were his photographs, of which he claimed thousands. Boyd, 86, died peacefully in his home in April after lying down for a nap and not waking, according to an incident report. Though Boyd was stealthy and unassuming, those who frequent White Rock Lake will feel his absence; in years past he has been a fixture there, always willing to educate the curious on the lake’s myriad species.

Longtime Dallas Arboretum employee and active member of Lake Highlands Presbyterian Church Chris Emrich died April 22 after living 16 years with breast cancer. Despite her illness, Emrich reportedly remained a productive member of both the arboretum and the church. She is survived by her husband, Roger Emrich.

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Junior and senior visual arts students at Booker T. Washington, four of whom live in East Dallas, wrote and illustrated the first-ever full-length high school compilation comic book. Their teacher is Mike Wolfman. The students are Nick Graves, Avery Storms, Francesca Bartos, Kameron Simms-Washington, Jose Ramirez, Alix Kast, Jose Garcia, Joy Schmitz, Bailey Hilliard, Valerie Coahuilas, Jordan Davis, Veronica Jones, Emily Edwards and Geovanni Casillas.