We cannot lightly allow the perpetrator of a serious crime to go free simply because that person believed his actions were reasonable and necessary to prevent some perceived harm.

Career
Wachtler graduated with both a B. Wachtler was arrested in November 1992 on charges including extortion racketeering and blackmail. Wachtler was criticized for writing the decision while his own 86-year-old mother was recovering from a stroke.

He achieved national notoriety when he was charged with and then convicted of acts stemming from threats he made against a former lover and her daughter. Known for the remark "A marriage license should not be viewed as a license for a husband to forcibly rape his wife with impunity" (in People v.