Much better than having judges expand the common law to include their own personal sense of what the law should and should not be.
But isn't that why state judges are elected?
So that if they do that sort of thing, they can be removed by the people in the next election?
Also, how do you feel about jury nullification, where a fellow is guilty of a law, as written, but the jury considers the law unjust and simply won't convict?