Judge Frank Caprio’s Final Interview: A Legacy of Love, Faith & Compassion

The Final Words of Judge Frank Caprio: A Farewell Gift of Grace and LegacyEvery once in a while, you find yourself in a conversation that you know will live in your heart forever. This episode is one of those conversations. It is the final interview with Judge Frank Caprio—“America’s Nicest Judge”—a man whose compassion and kindness in the courtroom have inspired millions around the globe. What you’ll hear today are not just stories, but the lasting words of a man reflecting on his life, his faith, and the legacy he hopes to leave behind. Judge Caprio shares openly about the lessons his immigrant parents taught him, the role of humility and faith in his life, and why he chose compassion when the world often demanded judgment. This is not just an interview—it’s his farewell message, a parting gift of wisdom on how to live a life filled with love, service, and grace. As I sat across from him, I couldn’t escape the gravity of the moment. His words carried the weight of finality—reminders not just of what he’s done, but of who he has been. Judge Caprio leaves behind more than rulings and courtroom moments; he leaves behind a legacy of humanity, showing us that the greatest measure of our lives is found in how we treat others. Key Takeaways:• Why compassion is Judge Caprio’s definition of true justice• The values his parents passed down that shaped his entire life• Why faith and humility guided every decision he made• What it means to leave behind a lasting legacy of kindness• How one life lived with love can inspire millionsThis episode is one I’ll never forget. It’s a chance for you and me to hear Judge Caprio’s final reflections, to be moved by his example, and to take his last words with us as a call to live with more love, more grace, and more compassion in everything we do.— Max Out If Judge Caprio’s story has inspired you and you’d like to honor his legacy, you can donate to support his favorite causes here: The Filomena Fund and PanCan ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠👉 SUBSCRIBE TO ED'S YOUTUBE CHANNEL NOW 👈⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → → → CONNECT WITH ED MYLETT ON SOCIAL MEDIA: ← ← ← ➡️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠INSTAGRAM⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ➡️⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FACEBOOK⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ➡️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LINKEDIN⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ➡️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ➡️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠WEBSITE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Ed Mylett?

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• 0:45Ed Mylett?

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• 1:03Speaker 01

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• 1:36Ed Mylett?

  This is the Ed Meyer Show.

• 1:41Ed Mylett?

  Hey, everybody. So I come with you with sort of mixed emotions today. I'm both excited and at the same time grieving a little bit, like millions of other people are. So today, I'm going to share with you a conversation with the beautiful soul that was Judge Frank Caprio. And ironically, we didn't know it at the time, but this was the last interview of this precious man's life. So I'm honored to share it with you. I'm also honored to let you know that on behalf of his family, we're going to make a donation to his favorite cause. And if you're interested in donating along with us, you can click the link below or in the show notes. But this is a beautiful conversation with a brilliant and gentle, generous man. And I'm so honored that I got to share the final one of his life with all of you. God bless you, everybody. Enjoy this special conversation with a beautiful man.

• 2:23Ed Mylett?

  All right, welcome back to the show, everybody. So today's special day for me. This is somebody that I've admired from a distance for it's just an extremely long time. He's an internet sensation, but he's 88 years old. You all know who he is. Immediately you'll recognize his voice. If you're on YouTube, you'll recognize his face. I consider him a kindness broker. A kindness broker. And somebody that if you just watched him, I think he'd just live better if you emulated many of the things that he does in his life. And he's coming to us today on a day I don't think he's feeling his best. He's also been going through a cancer battle. I asked him how he was, one to 10, he said a five. I said, well, by the time we're done, we're getting you to at least a 6.2.

• 3:07Ed Mylett?

  So he's sucking it up for us today on a day where he's not feeling his best as well. But he has a way to always make other people feel their best. Even when he's not feeling his best. And he'll do that for all of you today, for millions of you around the world. This is the great Judge Frank Caprio joining us today. Judge Frank, thank you for being here today. It's an honor to have you.

• 3:28Speaker 03

  Well, thank you for the opportunity. It's my son Frank is here. And we got one of the producers that's been with my dad from day one. Emmy nominated four times, Taylor. My mom wants to say hello.

• 3:40Ed Mylett?

  Hi, Mom. How are you?

• 3:42Speaker 03

  How are you?

• 3:43Ed Mylett?

  Well, we're gonna hold your whole family up in some prayer, like literally right when this thing's over with. So we get a little comfort and a little strength coming your way.

• 3:51Ed Mylett?

  Thank you for sharing. Thank you for sharing him with us today. I know it wasn't easy and we're very, very grateful. So thank you. Let's go back a long time. When you're 88, you can go back a long time, right? We could go through your upbringing and whatnot, but I want to first touch on a day because it just struck my heart. I actually was reading about, I got teary eyed. You as a little boy and your grandmother, ironically of all places, is in court. And that day kind of made an imprint on you for the rest of your life, never knowing at that age you'd end up spending a lot of your life in courtrooms. You were just a little boy at the time, but maybe you could just set the stage for maybe just a lesson in your life that you learned very young in a place that you spent a lot of time teaching other people lessons.

• 4:32Speaker 03

  That was actually my father, who was in court with his father.

• 4:36Ed Mylett?

  Okay.

• 4:37Speaker 03

  And my grandfather was a fruit peddler from Italy.

• 4:41Ed Mylett?

  Ah, okay.

• 4:42Speaker 03

  As, as was my father.

• 4:44Ed Mylett?

  Okay.

• 4:45Speaker 03

  I'm first generation here. So my grandfather and a number of his buddies, after peddling fruit all day, decided they play some cards and they got a little rowdy and my grandfather got arrested and my, my father was one of 10 children.

• 5:03Ed Mylett?

  One.

• 5:03Speaker 03

  And so my grandmother was notified that the following day she had to be in court because her husband got arrested.

• 5:11Ed Mylett?

  Oh, okay.

• 5:12Speaker 03

  Literally, she doesn't understand the process here. So she thinks she needs a lot of money to get her husband out of jail. So she goes to all the other fruit peddlers and borrows money from them. And the following day, she brings my father, because she didn't speak English. She brings my father who was in his early teens at the time. She brings my father as the interpreter.

• 5:35Ed Mylett?

  Oh, my goodness. Okay. So your dad's the little boy.

• 5:38Speaker 03

  My dad is the little boy, right?

• 5:40Ed Mylett?

  Okay. And what did he, what did he see that day?

• 5:42Speaker 03

  My grandmother is there with my dad in court and my grandfather's been in the cell all night, you know, so they call his case and my grandfather comes from the cell and he's disheveled and they seat him down and my grandmother gets so excited. She, she's in this strange court. Well, what she did was the night before, she went out and borrowed money from all of the other fruit peddlers, thinking that she was going to need some money to get her husband out of jail. And so as soon as they bring my grandfather up, my father is the interpreter, because she, my grandmother didn't speak English. And she says, she has a handful of money that she borrowed from the peddlers. And she says,

• 6:25Speaker 03

  please, Judge, please, no jail. I got a the money.

• 6:30Speaker 03

  It's an interesting story because my father was one of ten children and they all all told this story with such reverence for that judge. My father, every time he discussed this judge, here's how he described him. That great white haired Irish judge. A great white haired Irish judge.

• 6:50Ed Mylett?

  Why was he great? Was he kind to your grandmother?

• 6:52Speaker 03

  My grandmother got up and said, here's the money. The judge said to my father, are you going to interpret for your mom? And he says, yes. He says, tell your mother that I'm going to send her husband home and I want her to cook him a good meal.

• 7:06Ed Mylett?

  Hmm.

• 7:07Speaker 03

  He's a good man and he had one bad day and I'm not going to keep him here, but I want her to, I want you to go home with him and take care of him.

• 7:14Ed Mylett?

  Wow.

• 7:15Speaker 03

  That one episode changed the view of justice with all ten children. I heard that story when I was a kid. It changed my view from the time I was a youngster, you know? And I always remembered that story. And interestingly, in Providence, an area of immigrants, particularly Latin American. And I, I, I could review that story a thousand times over with those that came before me. But I always remembered the impact that it had on my family.

• 7:48Ed Mylett?

  That upbringing of yours, this is interesting for people to hear, just perspective. Cause you don't hear this anymore. Everything on Instagram now is get your Lamborghini, be a rich guy, you know? Get on the boat and sell the dream, you know? And you said, you know, the way you grew up, you're poor. And you actually called that a privilege. Do you really mean that? And if you do mean it, what was the privilege of being poor?

• 8:11Speaker 03

  It's true. I did, I did have the privilege of being brought up poor because I appreciated because of my upbringing with both parents, you know, who are immigrants, the fabric of America.

• 8:23Ed Mylett?

  Hmm.

• 8:24Speaker 03

  And the riches that we have here, not so much in money, but in what we were entitled to and how we treated it. And my father constantly preached that, but what a great country this was and that we had opportunity. And I can remember, you know, just simple little things that he, when I was 10 years old, he said to me, someday you're going to be a lawyer. And it was like an edict, you know, from above.

• 8:50Ed Mylett?

  Hmm.

• 8:51Speaker 03

  I wanted to be anything else but a lawyer from the time I was 10 years old.

• 8:56Ed Mylett?

  Did you ever think when you were going to become a lawyer that you'd end up being a judge? I mean, there was no internet at the time, but I mean, did you have a sense that that's something that, that maybe your life mattered, that you wanted to have an impact in the world? Was that?

• 9:10Speaker 03

  That was not one of my goals. It never dawned upon me. Uh, you have to understand, we lived in what they call a cold water flat, which means we didn't have hot running water. And it was, uh, just the fact that I was going to be a lawyer was so monumental to me. So we never went to the next step. Then after that, what was going to, what was going to happen? But it happened naturally, obviously.

• 9:33Ed Mylett?

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• 10:16Ed Mylett?

  Go to row.co/milet to see if you qualify. That's R-O dot C-O slash my let to get started on Row. For side effects of GLP-1 medications, including boxed warning, go to R-O dot C-O forward slash safety, R-O dot C-O slash safety. So when I end, when I ended up buying the island, we had to do all of our outdoor decorating and I spent a fortune in the first half of the place. And I'm like, I don't want to do this anymore, but I want the best stuff. And that's where Wayfair. My wife wanted to get this new garden bed and Wayfair was the place that offered the perfect solution. Wayfair also helps you create a home that stands up to real life with quality products, great value and trusted reviews. Wayfair verified products are hand vetted by product specialists that use a 10-point quality inspection system. Here's all I can tell you. The stuff has lasted

• 10:59Ed Mylett?

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• 11:36Ed Mylett?

  You and I would watch your clips. By the way, I watch very few things on social media, so you're all over my social media feed because I clicked on these clips of you all the time. I feel like I really know you very well. And you know, I wanted to ask you, this isn't in the book, but it's something I'm just curious about. You have kept since that story you learned as a little boy about the judge and your family, you've kept this, I'd call it like an outlook on humanity that is favorable and positive and loving. This is a hard question, Frank, but I'm curious, sir. It's gotta be hard, you know, and you're in a courtroom. So you're mainly seeing people who

• 12:18Ed Mylett?

  are accounting for one of their bigger mistakes in their life. You're not seeing them on their best day necessarily. And in the world today, you know, in social media or TV, it's, it's just so much negativity all the time that it can sour you on people, you know, on life. And I don't think anybody would blame you as a judge day after day, hearing people's stories of, you know, why they've made this mistake or committed this crime. How did you or did you keep this outlook that people are good in general and that we should treat them well?

• 12:50Speaker 03

  I was very fortunate that it wasn't only my father, it was my mother as well. You know, my mother was known in the neighborhood for feeding people that were hungry. If you were hungry, come to my house. Don't worry, you would get a nice meal. And it was always like, let's help other people. But I was saying that, but. Anyone that wasn't in distress was stopped by our house and they were they were helped.

• 13:16Speaker 03

  My father, one of his jobs was he was a milkman. He'd wake my brother and I up at four in the morning. He'd go to work on the truck.

• 13:23Ed Mylett?

  Oh, yeah.

• 13:23Speaker 03

  If you don't want to do this the rest of your life, make sure you stay in school. But I learned something from from that. If someone could not pay their milk bill, the company had a policy that after three weeks you stopped delivery. That was their policy. His policy was if they had children, he would never stop the milk. He didn't care what the company policy was. And many times he'd take money out of his own pocket and put and say they're making an effort to pay.

• 13:49Ed Mylett?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 13:51Speaker 03

  So these were the examples that I saw, you know, by way of example, these weren't speeches that were given to me. So it wasn't a situation where I was giving a speech saying do A and my parents did B, you know. They never made the speech. All they did was they they did they did A.

• 14:07Ed Mylett?

  I've always said with parents, a lot of the things with their parents, it's caught, not taught. We catch it because we see it from them. It's different than hearing a speech like some guy like me could give from a stage or something like that. I was thinking about all the stories that, by the way, his book, guys, I want to make sure that I give him proper credit for this book. By the way, his nickname is America's nicest judge, but the book is called Compassion in the Court: Life-Changing Stories from America's Nicest Judge. He's just one of America's kindest people. There he is. He's holding me. And I want to make sure you've learned that you've learned the social media game for sure. I want to make sure that you guys all get this because these are lessons that, you know, they're timeless and in a time like we're in today, they're mandatory.

• 14:52Ed Mylett?

  And the other thing I like about you, you're transparent. You're not perfect. You've made mistakes in your life as well. And I was thinking about about your first day as a judge. And you have a story from that day, your very first day, that I think you tended to regret a little bit of something from that day. And I think it just goes to show you that that you can learn lessons in life if you don't handle things perfectly the first time, too, if you wouldn't mind sharing that story.

• 15:17Speaker 03

  My first day on the court, I asked my dad if he would come down, you know, I'm a judge now, you know. I want my dad to see me up on the bench.

• 15:25Ed Mylett?

  Sure.

• 15:26Speaker 03

  And this woman came in, she had three or four kids, I'm not sure how many. And she had

• 15:34Speaker 03

  Traffic violations of somewhere around three to four hundred dollars. And she was the most arrogant person you can imagine. So she said, she's in the court, I'm trying to help her. And she says, I just can't pay it. I'm not paying it. I don't have the money, you know? And the more I tried to help her, the more arrogant she became. And so then she became arrogant and I I became a little upset. And I fined her the full fine. I I gave her penalties. I gave her everything. And now the court is over and I'm so proud of myself. You know, my dad was there on my first day as a judge. And I I was in my judge's chambers and I said to the bailiff, bring my dad in, please.

• 16:18Speaker 03

  I want to talk to him. So I'm all smiles, Dad, how did I do? He looked at me, he says, how did you do? How did you do? I said, hmm. He said, that woman. I said, what woman? The woman that had the three or four kids. He says, how could you do that? You can't do that to people. I said, she was so arrogant. She was rude. He said, she was scared. He said, do you know now that maybe she can't feed her kids tonight? Maybe she can't pay her rent. Maybe she can't pay one of her bills. They'll turn the electricity off. You can't treat people that way. You weren't brought up that way.

• 16:53Ed Mylett?

  Really?

• 16:55Speaker 03

  That set the stage for my entire judgeship. That first day on the bench with my dad giving me giving me hell.

• 17:03Ed Mylett?

  That is a great story. I was telling my wife all day today. It's like, I haven't seen you this excited in a while, you know? And I said, it's just someone that I admire. And one thing my dad had, my dad was a my dad was a recovering alcoholic, by the way, Judge. So he ended up being sober for thirty five years. So I saw two dads. I saw the dad that wasn't living so good. And then I saw the dad that was. But no matter whether he had been drinking or not drinking, he was always giving and kind. And um, I think what I admire in you is I see the best of my dad in you. And I want you to talk about something. I'll, I'll say it and then you tell me if I'm wrong. But my dad, when I'd see people, you know, there's a homeless guy on the street and I'm a little boy.

• 17:48Ed Mylett?

  I go, Dad, that guy's got two arms and two legs. Like, why isn't he out getting a job for his family? Or why's he got his kids? And no matter what the situation was ever, my dad would say, Eddie, put yourself in their shoes. Try to walk in their shoes. And I don't think I've really even done a very good job of that in my life. I mean, maybe as I've gotten older, I have, but you seem to me to almost, when you're talking to someone or hearing their case or just interacting, you put yourself in their shoes. Well, am I right about that? You're smiling, so.

• 18:20Speaker 03

  I was just about ready to give you that answer. And that's exactly what I did. I always placed myself in the shoes of the person that was before me. You know, because that first case in the court, when my father chastised me, you know, taught me so much. And, and he went on explaining to me, you know, you don't know what their life is like. Maybe she can't feed her kids tonight and so forth. And those were his words. Put yourself in her shoes. And I never forgot that. And I tried to follow that as long as I was on the bench.

• 18:52Ed Mylett?

  Did you ever go through a time in your life, Judge, honestly, where you had, you seem to be egoless almost? And I'm sure that there've been times in your life where, you know, as a young man in your 30s or 40s or 50s in your, the prime of your career, and you're probably doing very well as a lawyer or whatever it was. Have you always been humble or is this something you've had to work on? Because there's people listening to the show, frankly, that they're starting to have some success. And when you start to have some success or a couple bucks or some notoriety, you can begin to feel pretty good about yourself. Did you ever go through a season like that? And was there ever a time that you had to be reminded of where you come from? Have you always held on? You're laughing again, so I guess there's an answer.

• 19:31Speaker 03

  Well, you know, my dad would wake my brother and I up at four in the morning to help him on the milk truck.

• 19:37Ed Mylett?

  Yep.

• 19:38Speaker 03

  He would say, if you don't want to do this the rest of your life, you better stay in college. You better go to college. You know, and then I saw how he treated. People who couldn't pay their milk bill. Even though his company was a major company would demand that after a period of time, two or three weeks, if they didn't pay the bill, that he was ordered to stop the milk. That was their rule. His rule was if they had children, he never stopped the milk. And many times he put money out of his own pocket and say they're trying to pay. But he never gave me lessons in saying, this is how you treat people and this is how you treat people. But he did it by way of example. So I lived that. I saw how my dad treated

• 20:20Speaker 03

  people. I saw how my mom treated people. She fed people that were hungry. So all of that was, was a great learning experience for me. But it wasn't, it wasn't a situation where I was sat down and said, okay, now this is how you treat people.

• 20:35Ed Mylett?

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• 21:20Ed Mylett?

  Quince. Download the Quince app for app exclusive offers or go to quince.com/ed for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK too. That's Q U I N C E dot com slash ed. So you know, I've been trying to take my health and my morning routine to the next level. And I used to do a whole bunch of different stuff, tons of different supplements. And then I found all in one in a drink with IM8. IM8 is the way to simplify your supplement routine, finally, once and for all. 16 supplements replaced 90 ingredients across nine major organ systems in one drink. You can have all these supplements for $2.61 a day. I've changed my mornings. The whole IM8 routine has changed my mornings.

• 22:03Ed Mylett?

  I feel great and I bring energy to the entire day. Go to IM8health.com/Ed10 right now, or click the link in the description and use code ED10 for a free welcome kit, five free travel sachets plus 10% off your order. That's code ED10 at IM8health.com/Ed10. Code ED10 at IM8health.com/Ed10. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. You've had a bout with some health the last while now. And if I be serious with you, I'm curious, like advice from a wise man.

• 22:46Ed Mylett?

  Like, we're all in the midst of dueling our lives right now that are listening to this show or watching it. And I hope you have 20 more years, but let's assume that you're in the final quarter, right? You know, later in life. What do you believe? If you could give us wisdom and you could speak to someone younger, what makes a good life? What makes a good life for you?

• 23:08Speaker 03

  A good life is service to others. That's a good life. Self-grandizement is not a good life. Personal wealth is not a good life. But treating others with respect and dignity and helping when you can, that's a good life.

• 23:26Ed Mylett?

  That's right to the point. Is there ever a story in court that you even to this day think of that brings you to tears, someone in front of you that you thought, my gosh, this poor person? Is there one that stands out above others or a one that stands out?

• 23:40Speaker 03

  Well, I have several. Well, I'll tell you, one woman came in and she couldn't pay her bill and she actually became a little arrogant. And next thing I know, she told me that her child had died the day before. So I've had several situations like that. So and my point is, you know, I know people have said to me, the law is the law, you know, and that's it. It doesn't make any difference. That's their rule. My rule is, you know, I'm dealing with another human being and I take all of those factors into consideration.

• 24:12Ed Mylett?

  You say compassion is action. What does that mean?

• 24:16Speaker 03

  Well, a lot of people talk compassion.

• 24:19Ed Mylett?

  Yeah.

• 24:20Speaker 03

  But acting out compassion is something different. You know, if you see a person who's on their luck and they can't afford a meal for their family, you tell everybody, boy, that poor family is so terrible, you know, they don't, they can't feed their children. That's, that's not act of compassion. Act of compassion is you help them out.

• 24:41Ed Mylett?

  When you look at, not to be political, but so we're not going to be political here. I don't do that here. But I consider you like a leader. You led the courtroom when you were in it. And then, you know, hundreds of millions of views of clips of you. And a lot of people that watch my show or listen to it are leaders of a family, or they're leaders of their business, or they're aspiring leaders. And it just seems like compassion, kindness, empathy seems to be maybe not as rewarded or as acknowledged as a priority as it once was and should be. And it's not always the examples we see from either political party or around the world.

• 25:25Ed Mylett?

  I just wonder what you think makes a great leader. And I know that's not in the book, but it's a question I wanted to ask you because I consider you someone who's led in many different areas of your life. You've led your family. You've led in the courtroom. You've been a leader for people's emotions and the way they view the world on social media. What do you think makes a great leader?

• 25:43Speaker 03

  At the end of the day, we're judged by how we treat others. That's reading. And how we treat others is doing, it's by way of example. And that's how we treat others. I know. So many instances where people preach one thing and treat people differently, you know, and I see it on the, I see it on the bench, unfortunately, with judges, that happens, you know, so, but I think at the end of the day, how we treat other people is really how we're going to be judged.

• 26:15Ed Mylett?

  When you read your work, there's a lot of family in it. And I'll tell you a thing on my dad I wanted to ask you about. I wish I could ask my dad this and I can't, so I'm asking you. As I got older, I would look at my dad and he didn't have a lot of friends. He had some, but not a lot. And I used to think, you know, how do you get through life and not have eighty-five or ninety or a hundred friends, you know, like, how, how is that? This is when I was younger. And then I asked my dad, I said, Dad, how come you don't have any friends? He goes, you know, Eddie, friends are important, but family's different. And, and family is what you're going to have as you get older. Maybe there's a few friends that are chosen family, but it's family. And it makes me emotional to say this to you, but as I've gotten older, my friend circle has shrunk considerably.

• 26:59Ed Mylett?

  There's, there's not as many that are there forever. They're there for a season in life. And there's just these values in life that I feel like were more centrist forty, fifty, sixty years ago, which was family. And no one seems to not be talked about anymore. And I'm reading your book and I'm like, family this, family this. You know, your dad in the book is in there throughout and, and your mom. And I'm just wondering what you would say to us, listening to these wise words about the importance of family?

• 27:33Speaker 03

  The basic unit of society is the family unit. It's the question above that. And our first teachers in life are our parents. They're teaching us by way of example on how they treat other people. At the end of the day, we're judged not by how much money we make, but, but how much we help others. That's basically what it's all about. Service to others.

• 27:56Ed Mylett?

  You think Tupp would be proud of you?

• 27:59Speaker 03

  I hope so. I know that.

• 28:03Ed Mylett?

  Tupp is his dad, by the way.

• 28:04Speaker 03

  He was proud of me the first day I came to court. I'm not sure about after that. No, he was, he was very proud of me. Tupp, Tupp was a very unique individual. He would, he would help anybody and everybody. You know, that was his life, his life. His motto was be of ser-, be of service to others.

• 28:23Ed Mylett?

  Well, I think he's damn proud of you.

• 28:27Speaker 01

  This episode is brought to you by Michelob Ultra. Good times mean competitions between you and your friends. Like seeing who can throw some pigskin the farthest or rush the field the fastest. Winner gets an ultra because it's not just a superior like beer. It's also giving fans superior access to their favorite sporting events. Superior is worth playing for. Visit michelobultra.com/superioraccess to enter. Enjoy responsibly. Copyright 2026 Anheuser Busch InBev Michelob Ultra Beer, St. Louis, Missouri.

• 28:56Ed Mylett?

  I know our time's limited, but I want to ask you about cycles. You know, they run through families too. And I assume, you know, when you're in court, there's some through lines that are common. Not always, but poverty, addiction, trauma, stress. You've seen a lot of that. What do you think can break that cycle more powerfully than a courtroom or a law can? Is there something that can break through those cycles?

• 29:21Speaker 03

  I've said earlier, the basic unit of society is the family unit. And that's where it all comes from. It's very difficult to be exposed as a youngster in the early years of your life, to be exposed and seeing certain behavior, you know, that's not, not good. And then all of a sudden, you don't treat people that way. Our greatest goal in life was to be of service to others. So many times people don't have that opportunity to have a loving house, a loving father, a loving mother, a loving grandparents, loving cousins. My mother was one of eight. My father was one of 10. I had over 40 cousins. I had 18 aunts and uncles.

• 30:04Speaker 03

  And I can say with all fear of contradiction that at any time, I could walk into any of my aunt's houses or uncle's houses and say, I'm hungry and I get fed.

• 30:17Speaker 03

  And if I didn't say I was hungry, they'd ask me, are you hungry?

• 30:21Ed Mylett?

  That sounds like my family too. This is the hardest question you're gonna get asked in any of your interviews, because it's not in the book. So I'm gonna push you. On a day you're not even feeling your best, but I'm gonna push you. Is there something? That you believed when you were young? That you changed your mind about as you got older and you don't believe anymore? And you've changed your belief about something? So the book's about lessons you learned when you were young through your upbringing. But is there something? You as a little boy, or a young man, or early in your career, believed? That was important? That you no longer believe? That you changed your mind about?

• 30:58Speaker 03

  Well, first of all, I've said this in so many different ways and so many times. Is that my big experiences in life came from my dad? And how I was brought up from my mother and my father. And those are lessons that you just don't discard. They're deeply embedded in me for the rest of my life. And I try to display those qualities with my children as well. I'm not sure if I was successful, but I think I was. I was sick of hearing people say, my kids, I just can't control my kids. What do you mean you can't control your kids? You know? Then I, you know, then get into a long conversation. How do you treat your kids? What do you do for them? Do you take them out? You know, they ask them how they're feeling. Do you spend special time with them?

• 31:43Speaker 03

  Do you take the Fenway Park? I mean, do you do all of this stuff? You know? That's what family life is all about. Showing love. It's not enough to say to your kids before you go to bed at night, I love you. And then during the day, ignore them.

• 31:58Speaker 03

  It's all in that personal relationship. I grew up knowing? That no matter what the circumstances in life were? What, they make any difference what they were? That if I was in trouble, my father would be there and my mother as well. I never was at that point, incidentally. I never was at that point.

• 32:17Ed Mylett?

  You made me think when you said that, I wonder how many people don't feel that, don't have that.

• 32:21Speaker 03

  No, I was gonna say, I think the disintegration of the family unit is the sin of this country.

• 32:26Ed Mylett?

  Gosh, I think you're right. I think you're right. Last question for you. By the way, God bless you. You're such a special man. I'm gonna pray that you feel a little bit better, too. I want you to know that.

• 32:37Speaker 03

  Praying.

• 32:38Ed Mylett?

  I will. I'll keep praying. I know it's a rough time. How do you want to be remembered? Or do you not care?

• 32:48Speaker 03

  I'm honored to be remembered as someone that helped other people. Simply, what a big long speech. Someone who helped others, particularly those in need.

• 32:58Ed Mylett?

  I want to tell you something. You did that today, and you weren't feeling up to it. And, you know, you said something earlier, people talk a good talk, but at eighty-eight years old and going through what you're going through in your health right now and not feeling your best today, you do it unconditionally. And that's character. It's not, it's not just when you feel like it, or when conditions are great, or when people treat you kindly to you, so you treat them kindly back. It's unconditional. And I'm so honored I got time with you today. Thank you for helping so many people today, Judge, and I want to make sure everybody holds you up in prayer, number one.

• 33:40Ed Mylett?

  And number two, since we're in the business of books, let's make sure they go get compassion in the court. Hold it up again, young man. There it is.

• 33:50Speaker 03

  I just happen to have one here.

• 33:55Ed Mylett?

  Life-changing stories from America's nicest judge, and maybe the nicest person I've ever met, too. So, Judge Frank Caprio, thank you for today. God bless you, my friend.

• 34:06Speaker 03

  Thank you very much.

• 34:08Ed Mylett?

  All right, everybody. So what a gift. And I have to tell you, I've done a lot of interviews in my life, and his inherent goodness shined through even as he was going through what was a very painful day, to be candid with you. I asked him multiple times before we recorded that day, "Do you want to do this?" And this beautiful man said, "Absolutely, yes." He powered through all of the discomfort and lost his life just several days after that conversation. That's how you know you want to have a life of service. And he told us all in that interview, "Justice without compassion isn't justice at all." And if there's anything he represented, it was compassion. And you saw that shine through in the interview. And again, I just want to remind you that we're going to make a donation to his favorite cause and charity on behalf of our organization. And you're welcome to do the same by clicking the link that you see in your show notes or below here.

• 34:52Ed Mylett?

  Just want to say God bless you to everybody, and I hope you share this episode with as many people as you possibly can to honor this great man. God bless you.

• 35:03Ed Mylett?

  This is the Ed Marlin Show.