It’s all over

Another semester down. I’m knee-deep in exam-writing now. The case against Benedict Kuehne (JD ’77) is over, too. So, the law of conservation of anxiety holds. Just walking into the library during finals season gives me contact-tension. But there’s a wave of relief spreading over the criminal defense bar all over town and, indeed, the nation. Kuehne’s understated and exemplary graciousness survived the ordeal of being prosecuted, as demonstrated by his statement: “I have had throughout a deep and abiding belief that things would turn out well in the end. … We are all fortunate to be able to say that we have a Justice Department whose goal is to try to do the right thing—not to win at all costs.” And Judge Marcia Cooke emerges vindicated, having had her dismissal of the money laundering count characterized as “eminently correct” by a unanimous Eleventh Circuit panel. All in all, a heartwarming holiday tale, like, you know, Die Hard.