Because there's still some good left in the world, Frodo, and it's worth fighting for.
Topic: Honorable Mention

OMAHA - Joseph W. Moylan, a longtime Douglas County judge, has died at the age of 73. He served 21 years on the bench after his appointment by then Gov. J.J. Exon, in 1973.

In 1993, Judge Moylan resigned rather than rule on an abortion notification waiver for a pregnant teenager. Under the law, a girl 17 or younger had to notify a parent or guardian that she intended to have an abortion, or she could petition a judge for a waiver.

Gretchen Moylan said her husband had reviewed the law, and his notes said: "By the time I was assigned a case in August 1993 ... I knew what I had to do." After 21 years as a judge, he quit.

Doing so drew national attention. Letters and other responses came from across the country, and awards came from Boys Town, Metro Right to Life, a Jesuit honor society and from other organizations.

Moylan's decision was driven by his moral convictions, said attorney Susan Ann Koenig of Omaha on Monday, who represented the young woman.

Martin Cannon, an Omaha attorney who has represented anti-abortion groups, said his friend Moylan feared that had he waived the notification, she would have carried through with the abortion. "The whole reason she's in court is because she's going down that road," Cannon said Monday. "It's simply a given."

Said Moylan at the time: "My personal belief is that someday we'll all meet at the final judgment and give an accounting of our lives. I've got a lot of things I wish I didn't have to account for, and I don't care to add something like this to the list."

After his resignation, the judge became involved in anti-abortion activities. In the summer of 1999, for example, he and his wife helped organize a prayer vigil near Dr. LeRoy Carhart's Abortion & Contraceptive Clinic office in Bellevue.