The fiercest judge I ever did see

You ever hear about U.S. District Judge John H. McBryde? He was the fiercest judge I ever did see.

The court announced his death today. He died on Christmas Day at age 91,

Past writers have used these words in their profiles to describe him: volcanic, impatient, tyrant, nasty, hanging judge and fire-breathing.

If I were a lawyer, I'm sure I would not appreciate this man. But I come at this as a reporter who has spent decades sitting on cold, hard courtroom benches listening to lawyers drone on and on, repeating the same questions, blah, blah, blah.

Move along, counselor.

Here's how McBryde moves them along:

McBryde once asked a federal public defender: "Would you please answer the question either yes or no?" The long answer irritated McBryde. Hello, $500 fine for contempt of court.

McBryde has ordered lawyers to attend remedial reading classes and ethics classes. He's jailed lawyers for contempt and banned others from his courtroom.

He runs his courtroom with complete control. He appears to know every nuance of testimony. He constantly calls lawyers out for rules infractions or breaches of decorum.

He warns lawyers, warns them again, and when they don't comply, he quiets them and orders them back to their chair, even if they're not done.

When a lawyer repeats and repeats, McBryde might interrupt and say, "The witness already answered the question. Move on to something else, or you may be seated."

If a lawyer didn't take his seat upon McBryde's order, I've seen the judge's bailiff step up and gently walk the lawyer back to his seat. Hey, it's better than jail.

I mustn't forget his time limits. If McBryde says you have eight minutes, he'll give you a strict two-minute warning when six have passed.

A trial that would take two weeks in another judge's court takes five days in his. As long as an accused gets time to present a proper defense, I don't see that as a fault.

Oh, and he never has a backlog. He hates backlogs.

A few years ago, a Fort Worth income tax protester waiting to be sentenced by Maximum John tried to hire a hit man for $100,000 to knock off the judge. But the hit man turned out to be an undercover FBI agent.

(Note: This ran in Dave Lieber's Watchdog Nation newsletter, free each Wednesday night through The Dallas Morning News. Sign up here: Get newsletter.)