Robert Alexander Inch

Robert Alexander Inch (April 3, 1873 – January 12, 1961) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, New York from 1923 to 1961 and its Chief Judge from 1948 to 1958.

Education and career

Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Inch obtained an Artium Baccalaureus degree from Princeton University in 1895 and then graduated from New York Law School in 1897. After graduation, Inch spent the next 27 years as a lawyer in private practice in New York City, New York.

Federal judicial service

Inch received a recess appointment from President Warren G. Harding on April 28, 1923, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York vacated by Judge Thomas Chatfield. He was nominated to the same position by President Calvin Coolidge on December 15, 1923. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 8, 1924, and received his commission the same day. He served as Chief Judge from 1948 to 1958. He assumed senior status on January 6, 1958.

Notable cases

As a federal district judge, Inch presided over a full array of civil and criminal matters, ranging from prosecutions under the Volstead Act during the Prohibition era to receivership cases during the Great Depression and conspiracy charges against alleged organized crime leaders during the 1950s. From 1948 to 1951, Inch presided over the government's case against Martin James Monti for assisting Germany during World War II, denying Monti's plea to withdraw his guilty plea to charges of treason that initially resulted in a 25-year prison sentence.

Criticism

Although Inch was reportedly a dedicated and hardworking judge, his decisions were not universally respected. In particular, Judge Learned Hand of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which reviewed Inch's rulings when they were appealed, was consistently critical, frequently referring to Inch in internal court memoranda by derisive names such as "the Inchworm" or "Judge Millimeter."

Personal

Off the bench, Inch was known as a lover of golf, a sport he played avidly for more than 50 years.