Wednesday, January 20, 2010 5:15 PM - By David Lat
We’re taking some trips down memory lane this week at Above the Law. Yesterday we wrote about Peter John, a Lawyer of the Day from 2007.
Today we bring you news about Herman Thomas, a Judge of the Day from 2007. He was accused of improperly paddling prisoners, but was acquitted at trial.
Now he’s exploring new opportunities in the political realm. From WKRG:
Three months after he was found not guilty of paddling and sexually abusing inmates, former Mobile County Circuit Judge Herman Thomas is running for State Senate.
“I wish to continue my commitment to serve my community that has done so much for me and my family,” Thomas said.
Like acquitting you on charges of spanking male prisoners and trading favorable treatment for sexual favors?
Herman Thomas isn’t the first former judge to go into politics. Over the years, there has been significant movement between the judicial and the legislative branches. (Linda Greenhouse has this nice write-up of the phenomenon.)
But ex-Judge Thomas’s move still seems a bit… random. Could there be another reason he’s running for elected office?
Wednesday, December 23, 2009 2:47 PM - By Kashmir Hill
When Judge Donald Jackson enters a courtroom, the bailiffs may ask that “all kneel” instead of rise. The Texas county judge has been found guilty of offering to help a woman accused of DWI if she was willing to serve time in the bedroom.
A 28-year-old woman charged with driving while intoxicated accused Jackson of offering her a better court-appointed attorney if she’d agree to a romantic relationship. A jury found Jackson guilty Friday of official oppression.
Photos of the criminal temptress in a video after the jump.
Judge Mark Kent Ellis told Jackson, “We are all tarnished by your stupidity.” Then Judge Ellis gave him a sentence that he “wouldn’t wish on his worst enemy.” What’s that?
Wednesday, December 16, 2009 1:42 PM - By Kashmir Hill
Earlier this year, Kansas lawyer Kimberly Ireland filed a lawsuit against state judge Kevin Moriarty, accusing him of masturbating while overseeing her divorce mediation. After we wrote about it, her ex-husband came to Judge Moriarty’s defense, saying his wife’s accusations were limp.
Ireland is now recanting her claims as well, issuing a public apology.
A one-time legal assistant to ousted District Judge Elizabeth Halverson won a $50,000 judgment Tuesday in the defamation case she filed against Halverson in 2007. District Judge David Wall on Tuesday ordered Halverson to pay the money and to return files to the assistant, Ileen Spoor….
Wall denied Spoor’s claim for $100,000 in punitive damages. Halverson did not attend the proceedings.
Had Her Honor attended, would the outcome have been different? As an oral advocate, she’s not half-bad.
So, what were the allegations against Elizabeth Halverson?
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 11:36 AM - By Kashmir Hill
Many ‘08 law school grads are about to take a step up to second year associate level at Biglaw firms across the land. You’re feeling pretty proud? And lucky to have a Biglaw gig these days, right?
Well, eat your hearts out. Michael Edwards, Georgetown Law ‘08 grad, has already been appointed a judge. He took his seat on the bench in Indiana City Court on Tuesday. From WTHI TV:
The Indiana Supreme Court appointed a new attorney to become a temporary judge in a southern Indiana City Court. Michael Edwards is a Naval Academy graduate, former Marine, and now the city court judge in Bicknell.
A Georgetown classmate tipped us off to the news:
This is one of my friends from GULC’s class of 2008. Already a judge! Ridiculous!
So how’d Edwards come to the attention of the Indiana Supreme Court? Judge Edwards’ ascension to the bench is a result of malfeasance by a prior judge, but was also due in part to a pushed back start date at a Chicago Biglaw firm.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009 12:03 PM - By David Lat
In today’s Morning Docket, we mentioned the recent benchslap administered to Sidley Austin by Judge Diane Cannon (pictured), an Illinois state court judge. Lynne Marek of the NLJ reports:
A court hearing on Tuesday in Chicago at which former Northwestern University journalism students planned to fight a subpoena for their records and grades turned into a judicial lambasting of their Sidley Austin lawyers.
It started when Judge Diane Gordon Cannon of the Cook County Circuit Court called the lawyers, partner Richard O’Brien and associate Linda Friedlieb, to the bench before prosecutors from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office had even arrived. She asked who had written the brief she was holding. O’Brien and Friedlieb responded that they had submitted the reply supporting the motion to quash the subpoena.
Judge Cannon was, suffice it to say, not happy about the Sidley Austin brief.
Her Honor’s complaints — plus discussion of whether they were justified, and a reader poll — after the jump.
Remember Judge Herman Thomas? He’s the former Alabama state court judge who was accused of spanking male prisoners, trading favorable treatment for sexual favors, and improperly interfering on behalf of a cousin in legal trouble.
Judge Thomas challenged the charges at trial, and this afternoon the jury returned its verdict. From the Mobile Press-Register:
Herman Thomas has been found not guilty on charges of sex abuse, sodomy and assault. The jury initially returned seven not guilty verdicts on five sex abuse charges, one sodomy charge and one assault charge and reported they were deadlocked on the remaining counts. Judge Claud Neilson dismissed those deadlocked charges against the former Mobile County Circuit Court judge.
In a speech last night before the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the chief justice of the California Supreme Court, Ronald M. George, criticized his state’s reliance on the initiative process. His remarks focused on how that process, direct democracy taken to the extreme, has paralyzed state government, especially when it comes to fiscal matters.
Thursday, October 8, 2009 3:07 PM - By Kashmir Hill
Last month, we linked to a story in Courthouse News Service about Kansas Judge Kevin Moriarty. Kansas attorney Kimberly Ireland filed a lawsuit against Judge Moriarty, alleging that he had used inappropriate language and masturbated during her divorce mediation.
In her suit, she said that her ex-husband supported her and had testified about the judge’s inappropriate behavior at the mediation during their divorce trial.
After the post went up, her ex, Kevin Ireland, reached out to us to set the record straight:
First off, I am not in support of this lawsuit. I never had issue with anything the judge did during our mediation.
There may have been some bad language, but there was no beating of the honorable gavel, says Ireland.
Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is not really retired yet. “I am more busy in retirement than before,” she told Above the Law in a recent interview. One of her myriad projects is Our Courts, a non-profit organization that develops Web-based games to teach seventh- and eighth-graders about government. We spoke with Justice O’Connor recently for our piece for the Washington Post reviewing the games.
We had hoped to actually play the games with her, but it turns out she’s not much of a gamer. Not being the computer type, she hasn’t actually played the Web-based games herself. “I watched young people play it. They have a lot of fun. They’re actively engaged. I think it’s very exciting,” she told us.
Justice O’Connor has been touring the country to promote the games. She even stopped in to chat with Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. We got to catch up with her via conference call last month. We rung her up at One First Street — like some retired Biglaw partners, retired SCOTUS justices get to keep an office. After her secretary connected us, Justice O’Connor answered the phone: “Sandra Day O’Connor.”
We discovered that O’Connor is adamant about bringing an end to the election of judges in America. Read more from our interview, after the jump.
For long-time readers of Above The Law, Herman Thomas is a familiar name. He’s the former Alabama state court judge who allegedly enjoyed spanking male prisoners, traded favorable treatment for sexual favors, and improperly interfered on behalf of a cousin in legal trouble.
He gave up the paddle gavel two years ago. Now he’s headed to trial.
Chief Assistant District Attorney Nicki Patterson said authorities began looking at Thomas after he changed a jail sentence in 2006 for his cousin, former Mobile County school commissioner David Thomas, even though the case was being handled by another judge. Other cases that Thomas had taken over from other judges without their approval soon surfaced, she said.
And what happened to the prisoners in the cases commandeered by Thomas?
Tuesday, September 29, 2009 4:07 PM - By Kashmir Hill
Kimberly and Kevin Ireland, of Kansas, decided in 2007 to file for a divorce. Their case was mediated by state judge Kevin Moriarty. Things did not go well from there.
Defendant Moriarty used the word “f*&%” during the mediation… Defendant Moriarty discussed plaintiff Ireland’s female undergarments and referred to the same as “panties” during the mediation… Defendant Moriarty discussed plaintiff Ireland’s sex life during the mediation.
According to Kathy Ireland, none of this was relevant to the mediation. But Moriarty thought it was important. And exciting:
Defendant Moriarty appeared to be masturbating during the mediation.
It all sounds pretty crazy, right? But Ireland’s ex-husband is actually backing her up on this.
A Charles County judge is under investigation for allegedly letting the air out of the tire of a car belonging to a woman who works as a part-time cleaning worker at the courthouse, according to the car owner and sources familiar with the incident.
Two county sheriff’s jail officers said they saw Circuit Court Judge Robert C. Nalley letting the air out of the back right tire of a 2004 Toyota Corolla parked just outside the La Plata courthouse about 3:45 p.m. Monday, according to the two sources.
Apparently, the woman had taken Nalley’s spot:
Jean Washington, the owner of the Toyota, said in an interview that she had just entered the courthouse for her work shift when a sheriff’s deputy alerted her, “Jean, you need to move your car. Judge Nalley’s going to let the air out of it.”
Washington, 51, said she rushed out and moved her car to a different parking lot, farther from the courthouse. When she pulled into another parking spot, another sheriff’s deputy told her that her rear passenger tire was flat, Washington said.
Judge Nalley, we kind of love you. That’s what you get for taking a judge’s parking spot, cleaner lady!
Unfortunately, Nalley may not be entitled to his parking spot righteousness.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 4:45 PM - By Kashmir Hill
Jeffrey L. Marcuzzo is a Nebraska county judge with a temper. Leigh Jones at the National Law Journal reports that Marcuzzo’s corn got husked when a prosecutor rescheduled a matter before him back in October 2007. Marcuzzo called and left a vulgar message on the prosecutor’s voicemail:
“I did not appreciate that one f**king bit. And if I find out you ever did that again to me or any other members of the county court bench, I’ll shove it up your a** so f**king far it will make your throat hurt.”
The Supreme Court of Nebraska has disciplined the judge for violating judicial disciplinary rules and sentenced him to a 120-day suspension without pay.
We were curious: How did the prosecutor react to the profane message?
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, the guy who replaced Rod Blagojevich, wants to institute public financing for judicial elections. He’s set up a commission and everything!
The latest proposal floating around the Illinois statehouse would require lawyers to foot the bill on behalf of campaigning judges. A tipster reports:
[Pat Quinn] has proposed public financing of judicial elections beginning in 2010. Of course, Illinois, like many big states, is deeply in dept, so the governor plans to pay for this “reform” by taxing each lawyer $50, as an extra charge on his or her annual bar registration fee. Needless to say, many lawyers see this as bad policy and a terrible precedent. Why should a government, which has no money, pay for the cost of judicial campaigns, or transfer the cost to lawyers?
I’m surprised the government hasn’t put more “sin taxes” on the legal profession already. Should lawyers have to pay for a judge’s campaign? Probably not. Are you going to get the general public to rally to the defense of lawyers? Certainly not.
But it’s not too late to act. More details about the plan after the jump.
Two civil court judges in the Lone Star State got physical in their benchslapping yesterday, reports the Dallas Morning News Crime Blog:
It was a reported shoving match between Judge Carlos Cortez of the 44th Civil District Court and Judge Eric V. Moyé of the 14th Civil District Court. The fight occurred in Cortez’s chambers in front of a witness — a Dallas County sheriff’s deputy, according to Roger Mandel, who is Cortez’s attorney.
“Judge Cortez was physically assaulted by Judge Moye in Judge Cortez’s chambers,” Mandel said. “Judge Moye’s conduct is being investigated by the Sheriff’s Department.”
Moyé went after Cortez in Cortez’s own chambers! That’s so wrong. One tipster explains why Moyé might have had an advantage in the tangle:
I’d take Moyé in the fight… [he] is a long-time student of Aikido (see this - he’s also a top Amazon reviewer) and I think he still teaches at his dojo. In any event, the interesting question is what this would do (true or not) to Moyé’s alleged aspirations to the federal bench (he was nominated by Clinton back in the day and is rumored to have a continuing interest).
Well, we now know Moye is mighty capable of the judicial smackdown, an important part of being a federal judge. But it looks like he’s going to be the subject of a criminal investigation, which can’t be good for his aspirations.
More on this, why the judges were mixing it up, and Judge Cortez’s MySpace page, after the jump.
The story of New Jersey Superior Court Judge Lawrence DeBello has the makings for a great romantic tale — the forbidden love between a judge and his law clerk.
A Mercer County, N.J., judge has admitted breaching judicial ethics and policies by sending romantic e-mails to his former law clerk via his judiciary e-mail account and by using his judicial office to help land her a public defender job.
The alluring law lovely, who has not been named, clerked for DeBello in Hudson County Family Court from 2006 through 2007. When she left, she and DeBello kept in touch, exchanging e-mails that discussed “personal matters” and used “offensive language”, according to the Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct complaint [PDF].
DeBello unwisely used his judicial e-mail account for their correspondence, rather than opening a get_underneath_my_robes@gmail.com account. Even after being warned by his judicial superiors, DeBello could not keep his passion tamed:
DeBello admitted that at a December 2007 meeting with Hudson County Assignment Judge Maurice Gallipoli and Hudson County Trial Court Administrator Joseph Davis, he conceded the e-mails were inappropriate…. But after that meeting, the e-mails continued and even heated up. DeBello admitted that in December 2007 and mid-January 2008, he “participated in the escalation of the intimate tone and nature of those e-mail exchanges, which concerned their respective romantic feelings for one another.”
In January 2008, DeBello was transferred to Mercer County, but kept up the e-mails, trying to help the former clerk get a new job. He admitted he “used the power and prestige of his office” to advance her “private interests” by making an unsolicited telephone call to Deputy Public Defender Edward Marable — head of the Office of Law Guardian for the northwest region, who had appeared before him in court — telling him the former clerk was interested in a law guardian job.
Love obviously made this justice blind to the error of his ways. We just hope he got more than legal research out of his judicial Juliet.
DeBello has filed an answer [PDF] to the complaint which basically amounts to “Busted.” As Will S. said, the course of true love never did run smooth.
If you’re sick and tired of paternity tests on every episode of Maury Povich, join the club — the baby mamas club, that is. In a decision by the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, the court ruled that the trial court’s use of the term “baby mama,” along with other comments about the African-American defendant’s habits, could lead to the reasonable perception that the defendant’s sentence was impermissibly influenced by race.
A quick review of the exchange between the trial court and the defendant reveals that the trial court judge (the Honorable Joseph Wall) is a jerk. But damned if he isn’t a hilarious one:
THE COURT: Where are you working now? THE DEFENDANT: I’m unemployed right now. THE COURT: You’re unemployed still? THE DEFENDANT: Yes. THE COURT: Have you gotten a job since January? THE DEFENDANT: No, sir. THE COURT: You’re kidding. THE DEFENDANT: No. THE COURT: What do you do all day? THE DEFENDANT: I just stay at home with my daughter and that’s it. THE COURT: Where is her mother? THE DEFENDANT: At work. THE COURT: So the mother works and you sit at home, right? THE DEFENDANT: Yeah. THE COURT: And watch the child? THE DEFENDANT: I got all types of things goin’. My personal family. THE COURT: Where does the baby’s mama work? THE DEFENDANT: Metro Market. THE COURT: Did she finish school? THE DEFENDANT: Yes. THE COURT: Is she going to college, too? THE DEFENDANT: Yes. THE COURT: Where do you guys find these women, really, seriously. I’d say about every fourth man who comes in here unemployed, no education, is with a woman who is working full-time, going to school. Where do you find these women? Is there a club? THE DEFENDANT: No.
Thursday, November 20, 2008 9:33 AM - By Eliza Gray
* California’s Supreme Court agreed to hear the case against Prop. 8. [Reuters]
* For all the associates who go crazy working late into the night in dark conference rooms dreaming of embezzling money from the firm—let this be a lesson to you. Employee Angela Marie Dees was arrested for stealing 1.67 million dollars from the California law firm Moore and Waxler. The crazy thing? The firm didn’t even notice until they did an audit. [mysuncoast.com]
* “Stung by outsize investment losses, some of the nation’s biggest companies are pushing Congress to roll back rules requiring them to put more money into their pension funds, just two years after President Bush signed a law meant to strengthen the pension system.” [NYT]
* A jury heard opening statements yesterday in the MySpace hoax case, the one where the suburban mother used a fake alias to terrorize a 13-year-old who killed herself as a result. [ABC]
* Even though bankers basically caused a world-wide recession causing thousands of lawyers to lose their jobs (thanks a lot), at least Barclay’s is giving the litigators some love. Barclay’s is suing a hedge fund for hiding $150 million in investments. [Bloomberg]
* Yesterday was National Toilet Day. Everybody who works on Wall Street already knew that. [UPI]
Monday, October 20, 2008 3:09 PM - By Kashmir Hill
Salaries for New York judges have been capped at $136,700 for the past ten years. We reported on their attempt to force a raise by suing the New York legislature. New York Supreme Court justice Edward Lehner ruled in favor of mo’ money in June and gave the legislature 90 days to up their pay.
The state’s chief judge, Judith Kaye, was the force behind the lawsuit. But a lesser-known judge, Philip Straniere, of Staten Island, did his part to support the movement. He grew a big, bushy protest beard. He’s been wearing it for the last 14 months.
Unfortunately for cash-strapped New York judges, neither the beard nor lawsuit have done the trick as of yet. According to the New York Law Journal, New York Governor David Paterson has appealed Lehner’s decision. The judges’ brief defending Lehner’s decision is due Friday, with argument scheduled for November.
Straniere has not given up the protest, but he has given up the beard, in order to look less like Father Christmas while he runs for a state Supreme Court judgeship. His shave made the news. From the Staten Island Advance:
Straniere scores points for his Family Guy reference with a shout-out to Peter Griffin’s bird-infested growth. Negative points for the barber for butchering Straniere’s chin.
We’re taking some trips down memory lane this week at Above the Law. Yesterday we wrote about Peter John, a Lawyer of the Day from 2007.
Continue reading "Herman Thomas: Could the ‘Spanking Judge’ Become the ‘Spanking Senator’?"
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On her motorized 
