Ex-Judge of the Day: Hey Baby, Wanna See What's Under These Robes?

This ex-Judge of the Day is accused of propositioning a woman and then planting drugs on her car when she rejected him. Sounds like quite the southern gentleman...

Covering state judges NEVER gets old. They flip out at pastors, they brandish guns at alleged rape victims, and they make incredible campaign ads. If there’s some wonky human behavior, you can assume a state judge has done it or soon will.

This week, we’ve got a recent (and reluctant) ex-judge from Georgia who faces allegations of propositioning a woman to be his mistress. When she declined and talked to the press, the woman claims the judge planted drugs on her car.

And, according to state officials investigating the judge, this might be just the beginning of the trouble he’s in….

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has the unfolding story of allegedly unrequited love, public shaming, and controlled substances:

Early this month, Angela Garmley, 36, of Chatsworth, publicly accused then-Chief Magistrate Judge Bryant Cochran of Murray County of asking her to be his mistress when she appeared before him in his office in April. She said Cochran told her he wanted a mistress he could trust and to return in a few days wearing a dress but no underwear. In a recent interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Garmley said she did not comply with the alleged request.

Cochran has denied Garmley’s allegations.

What a strange way to procure a mistress. The alleged conversation sounds more like the process for hiring an accountant. “I have to trust you with all my money, and we have a very strict dress code around here. Absolutely no pants allowed. Except on casual Fridays. On casual Fridays, you can wear capris.”

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But apparently Judge Cochran didn’t take kindly to rejection. Garmley told her story to the press and was arrested not long after, when police found meth in a magnet box under her car. Charges are still pending, but her attorney, McCracken Poston (coolest name ever?!?!), says Garmley “firmly believes that operatives of former Chief Magistrate Judge Bryant Cochran were behind this, motivated by a desire to punish her for coming forward.”

She’s apparently not alone. Judge Cochran resigned last week in the face of a Georgia Bureau of Investigation… investigation. The agency plans to drop Garmley’s charges, stat:

“It’s the right thing to do,” GBI Special Agent James Harris said. “It needs to happen as soon as possible.”

Judge Cochran, through his lawyer and his strongly worded resignation letter, has denied the charges against him.

For its part, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is being careful to not show its hand:

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Late Thursday, Harris, one of the GBI agents called in to investigate the case, said the GBI obtained information that led the agency to believe all charges against Garmley should be dropped.

Harris did not say whether anyone would face charges. He did say, however, “This is only a small part of what’s going to be happening.”

Deedeedeedo deedeedeedo… Talk about a cliffhanger. I guess I’ll be tuning in next week with everyone else to hopefully find out what the hell Agent Harris is talking about.

Charges dropped against woman who accused Murray judge [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]