Lori Korzen: When justice fails: The urgent need for action in New Hampshire

The people of Berlin, and of New Hampshire as a whole, will not forget the tragedy of Marisol Fuentes’s murder. Nor will we forget the failures within our courts that served as an accomplice. One thing is clear: Granite Staters are grateful that Magistrate Stephanie Johnson has been removed from the bench. Her actions undermined the integrity of our justice system and put lives at risk. Her removal was necessary, and our community takes comfort in knowing she no longer presides over decisions of such consequence.

But we cannot allow gratitude to slip into indifference. If we stop here, we miss the larger reality: the failures that led to Marisol’s death were not the fault of one person alone. Judges Subers and Greenhalgh each had the opportunity to correct Johnson’s reckless bail decision. Each chose not to act. Their silence in the face of compelling evidence reflects something far deeper than individual misjudgment, it reflects a system without adequate oversight.