Although there have been individual books published about famous murder cases ranging from serial killers, mass murderers and more . . . ."Murdered Judges of the Twentieth Century" is the first collection of its kind.
Susan P. Baker started this project because she was concerned with the prevalence of violence in American courthouses in the 1980s and 1990s. She had always thought of a courthouse as a safe haven, a place where one came to resolve one's differences through peaceful means, a sanctuary if you will. she imagined that people had respect for the judiciary, for lawyers, for bailiffs, and for other folks who worked in the legal business whether or not at our safe haven. Although she knew of Federal Judge John Wood's assassination, she assumed it was a fluke. It was related to a drug case. Those people knew no bounds.
Baker, Susan P.: - Susan P. Baker was a family law judge in Texas for 12 years. Prior to and during her years on the bench, Judge Baker was involved in organizing the following programs and services in her community to benefit families in crisis: Family Law Mediation (a form of alternative dispute resolution), including financially aided mediation, Parent Education Classes (For Kids Sake), CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), Texas Chapter AFCC (Association of Family and Conciliation Courts), Community Service work for delinquent youths, and the Women's Resource and Crisis Center (a shelter and other programs for abused women). Judge Baker, also, wrote grants for Galveston County for the Children's Justice Act and Court Improvement Act, which helped reform the way child abuse and neglect cases are handled. The new program served as a model for the State of Texas. Judge Baker was married for 25 years. She and her first husband have two daughters and three grandchildren. Judge Baker remarried in 1998. During her tenure on the bench, the judge was a member of the Galveston County Family Bar Association, Island Youth Advisory Board, Galveston County Mediation Board, Galveston County Community Supervision and Corrections Board, Galveston County Juvenile Board, State Bar of Texas Family and Juvenile Law Sections, Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists, National Council of Family and Juvenile Court Judges, and The Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Texas and National Chapters. She has been a frequent speaker and trainer for such groups as Galveston County Family Bar Association, Family Law Ad Litem Seminars, Brazoria County Youth Home, University of Houston Clear Lake Legal Studies Program, South Texas College of Law Family Law Judicial Panel, St. Mary's School of Law "A View from the Bench," Foster and Adoptive Parent Training, Court Appointed Special Advocates Training, ABWA, Coastal AHEC, Prevention of Child Abuse, Mainland Bar Association, and singles programs, police departments, teachers organizations, school career days, Rotaries, and Optimists. Judge Baker, also, advocated for courthouse security in Galveston County, which caused the acquisition of metal detectors and trained peace officers for the protection of court participants. Her up-coming book Murdered Judges of The 20th Century is a result of her research into courthouse violence in this country.
