Jurist moves past ‘poor judgment’

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, December 11, 2003

State Supreme Court Justice Bobbe Bridge has seen the view from the other side of the bench. She has borne the weight of guilt. She has felt the sting of shame.

"This is the equivalent of me standing up here stark naked," she told members of the Rotary Club of Lynnwood Thursday. "This speech is as hard a thing as anything I have ever done."

She was there to pay a price — or a small part of the price — for what she called her "colossal error."

Bridge was arrested Feb. 28 in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and hit-and-run of an unoccupied vehicle. Breath tests showed blood-alcohol levels of 0.21 percent and 0.22 percent. The state legal intoxication threshold is 0.08.

In March, she was granted deferred prosecution on the drunken-driving charge in Seattle Municipal Court. The hit-and-run charge was dismissed.

Her speech at the Ballinger Lakes Golf Course in Mountlake Terrace was the first of three public presentations required by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct as part of its reprimand of Bridge.

That agreement goes beyond municipal court orders, which require her to complete a two-year alcohol treatment program. For one year, her car must be fitted with an interlock device that requires a breath test before it can be started.

A crowd of more than 100 listened as Bridge spoke of her "grievous transgression" that "put people on the road, my reputation and my dignity at risk."

"Having served on the bench, I’m all too familiar with alcohol statistics. I knew them by heart. … I knew it all — the risks, the dangers and the devastation," Bridge said.

"I had forgotten something — that social drinking would put me at risk. Even casual use of alcohol can sneak up on you."

She recalled that busy Friday in February. It was packed with professional commitments, and in the evening Bridge attended a gathering of women she had traveled with to Morocco.

With the arrest came "guilt, shame, fear and sorrow," she said. "While once I was comfortable meeting with the press, it became a feeding frenzy." Noting reporters in the back of the room, she added, "apparently, it hasn’t stopped."

Bridge wouldn’t take media questions, but several Rotary members asked theirs.

Jerry Miller stood and said he had been sober 28 years. "I did many things worse than you did," the 70-year-old Mill Creek man said. "I’ve gone through the 12 steps. How have you taken responsibility?"

"If you think this is easy, I’m not going to convince you," she answered. "On the criminal side, thousands take advantage of deferred prosecution."

Bridge’s two-year intensive probation has her participating in Alcoholic Anonymous. She said that AA determined she was not an alcoholic, but "an alcohol abuser due to depression and anxiety."

After two years, she must have three more years without legal problems if the offense is to be removed from her record.

"I chose it," Bridge said. "I could have gone to trial. I could have pleaded guilty and gone to jail for two days. I didn’t think that was taking responsibility. I stood before a judge. I apologized. And I faced a higher court, the judgment and scrutiny of my family, friends and colleagues."

Her greatest pain came from being a judge in the highest court in this state and putting the judiciary in a bad light, she said.

Today, "life is back, but life is different," said Bridge, 58 at the time of her arrest.

She is more aware of her limitations. She takes life more slowly. "It’s called life balance," she said.

She was accompanied Thursday by her husband, Jonathan Bridge, and her father-in-law, Herb Bridge. Her husband is co-chief executive of Ben Bridge Jeweler.

Bridge said as hard as it is, she welcomes being able to talk about what happened. "Thank you for giving me the chance to move forward," she said.

Since her arrest, Bridge said a number of people have pulled her aside to share how her predicament has influenced them.

"One journalist told me she took a cab after having two glasses of wine," Bridge said.

In introducing Bridge, Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Thomas Wynne recognized a retired judge in attendance and mentioned that "the court Christmas party is tonight."

This time of year, there’s a party every night. Parties cloud judgment, don’t they?

"Someone once said, ‘Good judgment comes from experience. And experience comes from poor judgment,’ " Bridge told the group.

Her experience sometimes feels like the movie "Groundhog Day," with Bridge waking up each morning thinking, "If only."

"If only I had heeded the advice I repeated over and over as a mother and as a judge: If you drink, don’t drive."

Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlsteinjulie@heraldnet.com