How to Police Judicial Dementia? One Chief Judge Plays Cop, While Others Try Gentle Persuasion

At age 89, U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein of Brooklyn has a reputation as one of the nation’s most respected legal minds. There is no requirement for a neurological checkup for federal judges, but Weinstein gets one every year, according to a joint report by ProPublica and Slate. “My memory is not as acute as it was, [but] principles, I know, and my judgment is the same—it may be better,” Weinstein tells the publications. Judges, like the rest or the population, are at increasing risk for Alzheimer’s and dementia as they age, the story points out. A ProPublica survey, conducted…