Courts

'If You Die Before Me, I Will Get To See Your Naked Body' And Other Things Judges Shouldn't Say To Clerks!

Wait until you see the punishment...

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Uncertain judgeFirst of all, why would the judge even get to see her naked? Unless he’s also the coroner or something, there’s no reason why this would be true. This is obviously not the most important takeaway from the recent ruling from the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct, but cradled between all the other allegations of rampant sexual harassment, this “if you die before me…” line is uniquely perplexing.

The recent opinion concerning Justice of the Peace Rick Grissam addresses wide-ranging allegations of harassment raised by his former clerk. Keith Lee of Associates Mind flagged the opinion this morning.

Grissam denies the naked body line though remarkably he confirmed most of the clerk’s story, which included some more wild comments:

6. A.S. stated that Judge Grissam told her about telling another court clerk he met at a conference in the hotel bar that she needed to “find a fat man like him because they have plenty of fat to snuggle with even though their peckers shrink.”

7. Judge Grissam also showed A.S. a video of a women pretending to have a tampon stuck in her.

While conceding most of this stuff, Grissam “stated they were made in a joking manner, and that he advised A.S. if she felt uncomfortable, she should let him know.” As joking is not a defense to sexual harassment no matter how hard people try, the County Attorney determined that Grissam had violated the county’s sexual harassment policy.

Now, at this juncture, you’re probably thinking Grissam is in real trouble, but you also have to remember this is Texas so…

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Based on the record before it and the factual findings recited above, the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct has determined the Honorable Rick Grissam, Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1 & 4, Place 1, Colorado, Mitchell County, Texas should be publicly warned for engaging in sexual harassment and creating an intimidating, hostile and offensive work environment, in violation of Canons 2A and 3B(4) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.

“Publicly warned.”

Running a tight ship down there in Texas!

HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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