Private Warning of a Justice of the Peace (05/29/08).

05/29/2008

After her vehicle was repossessed, a neighbor asked the judge to become personally involved in her dispute with the seller. On the neighbor's behalf, the judge wrote a letter, on judicial letterhead, stating that the seller had "illegally removed" the neighbor's automobile, even though no case was pending and no court had made such a finding. In the letter, the judge represented that the dispute was a "pending matter" and that any questions could be directed to the judge. The neighbor was allowed to use the judge's letter to persuade the towing company to release the automobile to her. [Violation of Canons 2A, 2B, 3B(2) and 3B(10) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning of a Justice of the Peace (05/29/08).