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| Judge Morton Perry May 15, 1924-Janaury 5, 2015. |
Back when the County Court Criminal Bench was almost exclusively white (Calvin Mapp being the only exception we can recall during this time period) and male and non-latin and there were separate divisions for crimes and traffic (lets see, Gerry Klein, Alfred Nesbit, Arthur Winton, Morton Perry in the crimes division) Judge Morton Perry was the epitome of what one would expect a judge to look like and be. He had a distinguished look about him. He was kind and calm and when we first walked into his courtroom as a young lawyer, he just looked like what Hollywood would cast as a Judge.
But he was also a fair judge, patient with the multitudes of unrepresented defendants who appeared before him along with the brand new prosecutors and PDs, many of whom knew less about the law than some of the "regulars" who appeared often in county court.
We once saw Judge Perry handle a solicitation of prostitution case and he recognized the defendant: "Sir, weren't you in my courtroom last week on the same charge?"
Defendant: "Yes Judge, that was me."
Judge Perry: "What do you have to say for yourself?"
Defendant: "I don't know judge, I guess I fall in love quickly."
It took several minutes for Judge Perry and the rest of the courtroom to stop laughing.
We remember Judge Morton Perry as a good and kind man and a fair judge who tried his best. He was a credit to the bench in Dade County and he served this community well.