Holding Court is a column by retired Rye City Court Judge Joe Latwin. Latwin retired from the court in December 2022 after thirteen years of service to the City. Latwin appeared on Episode 8 of Season 1 of our podcast MyRye.com Conversations with Doug French. Listen to learn more about Latwin and the Rye City Courts.
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One of the good guys
One of the things I learned as a judge was how to tell the good guys from the bad guys. I used to tell my interns that if you pay attention, you will learn to discern if a person is good or not. Everyone of them reported back to me that they had been able to distinguish them.
One of the good guys I encountered was recently retired Monsignor Dwyer. I met him under literal trying circumstances – during a trial. A local resident had been evicted from his residence. The Minister of the local Presbyterian Church heard that the resident was homeless. The Minister went to Monsignor Dwyer and asked for his help finding a temporary place for the resident to live. Monsignor Dwyer stepped up and offered the resident the chance to live in the parish house at Resurrection Church. One point for the Monsignor. The resident moved in January.
About 6 months later, Monsignor Dwyer went to talk to the resident to ask when he was going to move out. The resident, instead of being grateful and giving a humble answer, told Monsignor Dwyer he was never moving out.
Shortly thereafter, the Church commenced an eviction proceeding to remove the resident from the Church. The case came before me for trial. That is when I met Monsignor Dwyer as he was there to be Church’s witness. I had the most uncomfortable experience. As Monsignor Dwyer took the witness stand, I said “This must be as uncomfortable for me as it is for you” when I asked him if he swore to tell the truth! Here I was having the audacity of asking a revered man of the cloth if he was going to tell the truth! He understood my discomfort and was gracious to me. Point two.
As the resident walked out of court before the trial began, there was little doubt as to the outcome of the case. I granted the request for an eviction and the City Marshal, aided by the police, removed the resident. After the trial ended, realizing what Monsignor Dwyer and the church had done for the resident, I told Monsignor Dwyer “I guess no good deed goes unpunished.” He told me he had that saying on the wall of his quarters. Point three.
Then Monsignor Dwyer stepped up again. He offered to pay for the resident to rent a hotel room nearby for a few weeks. That was way beyond what was required or customary. It was an act of true charity. Point four.
Recognizing Monsignor Dwyer’s righteousness, I decided his good works should not pass unnoticed. I wrote a letter to Cardinal Dolan letting him know that one of his priests was living Christian virtues without acknowledgement or recognition and I thought the Cardinal ought to be made aware of his priest’s good deeds. I didn’t hear anything further from or about Monsignor Dwyer until several months later when I got a letter from Cardinal Dolan apologizing for his delayed reply to my letter, but begging my forgiveness since he explained he was in Rome for the election of the Pope and thanking me for letting him know about Monsignor Dwyer’s acts.
Monsignor Dwyer showed me he was unmistakenly one of the good guys. I wish him a deserved peaceful and happy retirement.
