“Perceptions of Justice: Law, Literature, and Film” by Terry Lewis

Terry Lewis’s excellent first venture into a nonfiction book, Perceptions of Justice: Law, Literature, and Film (2026), demands reader involvement. The former judge employs a Socratic method, posing questions that encourage readers to examine their own perceptions of justice and to formulate a personal philosophy of belief. Drawing not only on his courtroom experience, but also on a wide range of literature and film—such as The Godfather, The Ox-Bow Incident, Billy Budd, Letters from a Birmingham Jail, Kafka’s The Trial, The Rainmaker, The Merchant of Venice, and Winter’s Bone—Lewis invites readers to consider how justice, or the lack of it, is portrayed across these works.

This approach does not mean Lewis avoids offering his own perspective. He does so, but only after carefully laying out his reasoning through cogent examples.

Lewis embraces “the notion that respect for the individual requires us to hold him responsible for his conduct, just as it imposes on him the obligation to take responsibility for his actions.” That may sound like a serious philosophy—and it is—but Lewis also demonstrates a keen sense of humor. He recalls telling a defendant that, out of respect, he had to hold him accountable and “impose a lengthy sentence.” The defendant replied that he would prefer less respect and a reduced sentence—a moment that still gets a laugh. This humor enlivens the book, much as it seems to have enlivened his courtroom.

The book explores many legal and ethical issues familiar from recent headlines, including Stand Your Ground laws, the death penalty, mental illness, police brutality, restorative justice, Bush v. Gore, parental notification of a minor’s intent to obtain an abortion, and the O.J. Simpson trial. It also grapples with enduring philosophical questions: Is the outcome more important than the means? Is the adversarial system the best approach to justice? To what extent does race influence perceptions of justice? Lewis even asks whether “might makes right,” noting that “even in a democracy, those in power write the rules, and they almost always favor those who write them, often at the expense of the powerless.”

Throughout, Lewis makes a compelling case for maintaining an impartial judiciary, independent from the other branches of government. He explains that judges must avoid expressing personal political views so as not to create even the appearance of bias. Now retired from the bench, Lewis allows himself to articulate his own belief system, offering readers insight into the ethical and moral framework he developed over a lifetime devoted to the law. He concludes with a personal statement titled “This I Believe” and encourages readers to write their own.

Terry Lewis

Award-winning author Terry Lewis is the author of the thrillers Conflict of Interest, Privileged Information, Delusional, Incognito, and Fast Break. A past board member of Mystery Writers of America, Florida Chapter, he also served on the advisory board for the Florida Book Awards. He lives in Tallahassee with his wife, Fran, and their Border Collie mix, Pepper. Lewis grew up in Perry, Florida, and attended Florida State University for both undergraduate and law school studies. He became a trial judge in 1989 and served for thirty years, presiding over a wide range of criminal and civil cases, including high-profile matters such as the 2000 presidential election contest and the 2012 congressional redistricting case. During his time on the bench, Lewis was deeply involved in judicial education, serving as dean of the Florida College of Advanced Judicial Studies and as faculty for numerous courses. He also taught for many years as an adjunct professor at Florida State University’s College of Law.