Judge retires but is sticking around
James Bucci will help out hearing protection-from-abuse cases
The retirement celebration looked a little different.
There were no warm embraces, no cake to gather around, no congratulatory handshakes. Just a bunch of smiling faces belonging to colleagues staring at him from the glow of a computer screen as he gave his farewell speech — the event another victim of the coronavirus pandemic.
But it wasn’t really a farewell. It was more like see you around.
Berks County Judge James M. Bucci may have officially retired from his post on the bench last month, but he said he does not plan on hanging up his robes anytime soon.
He will instead serve as senior judge, helping out at the courthouse by hearing protection-from-abuse cases once a week. The transition will likely be an easy one for Bucci, who had spent the last 17 years hearing cases and handing down decisions.
“The beauty of being a senior judge is that you work when you want to,” he said with a chuckle. “They understand that there may be a week I need to be away and that’s the privilege of being in this new position.”
Bucci, who will be turning 70 later this year, said he’s looking forward to the lighter case load so he can spend more time with his three grandchildren that live in other parts of the country.
But he’ll still miss his courtroom where he most recently handled the bulk of family court cases that came through the courthouse.
“I found the role of being part of the judiciary very rewarding,” he said. “When you’re a judge you have the opportunity to make decisions that you hope perpetuate justice. It’s a great honor and privilege to be part of an independent judiciary — which is so important in this country.”
Bucci was first elected in 2004. He spent the first six years of his tenure presiding over criminal cases before volunteering to take on most of the county’s family court cases. He then added overseeing orphans court to his list of duties about two years ago.
“The opportunity to oversee family court came along at the right time,” he said. “I had been on the criminal side of things at a time when we were all very busy. We were presiding over about 40 jury trials and dozens of bench trials each year so I thought it would be a better fit for me.”
That decision, he said, was one of the best he ever made.
“Family court can be emotionally draining and emotionally rewarding all at the same time,” he said. “These cases are so important. You’re dealing with the lives and welfare of children, and the weight of those decisions can fall heavy on your shoulders.”
He added that his own personal experience as a father to three children certainly factored into the wisdom he brought to the bench.
“My experience as a parent was very helpful in my understanding of the dynamics of parent-child relationships,” he said. “You know that saying about how no one gives you handbook about how to be the perfect parent when you have a child is so true. But we do the best that we can.”
Bucci said he has seen some very troubling issues during his career. The most upsetting has been presiding over custody cases with parents who are struggling with addiction or have been incarcerated.
“There’s been a significant amount of custody litigation that arises out of the opioid epidemic,” he said. “We see a lot of grandparents coming to court seeking custody because one or more of the parents are addicted.”
He said those cases are heartbreaking. But the most difficult are actually custody cases that arise when two parents, who are divided by great distances, want the opportunity to raise them.
“Those are the toughest cases,” he said.
President Judge Thomas G. Parisi, who has served with Bucci, commended Bucci for his work.
“He certainly has been exemplary in his service as a judge,” he said. “He’s pretty much been in most of the divisions that we serve throughout the last 17 years at one time or another. And he has always quietly and efficiently done a superb job.”
Parisi said the compassion that Bucci possesses as a judge stands out.
“He’s a very empathetic person,” he said. “Certainly one of the attributes of a good judge is to be empathetic and willing to listen to each side before making any decisions.”
Before being elected to the bench, Bucci started his career in the courts as an assistant district attorney representing the county in legal matters. But after just two years he decided to leave and spent most of his career in private practice and served briefly as interim district attorney.
Now that he has decided to take a step back from the law, he said he will have more time to focus on his second passion: beekeeping.
“It’s actually something I’ve been doing for a long time,” he said.
Bucci said he had his first hive when he was just 12 years old. He dabbled in beekeeping from time to time during his time outside the courtroom but began to get more serious about it seven years ago.
He said that while he plans to spend more time tending to his hive so that he has a consistent supply for his friends and family, he has no plans to ramp up commercial production anytime soon.
“Oh no,” he said with a laugh. “It’s just a hobby.”