Private Warning and Order of Additional Education of a Senior Judge. (05/01/14).
05/01/2014
The judge failed to follow the law and failed to maintain professional competence in the law when he denied a litigant's request for a court appointed attorney in a contempt of court proceeding without conducting an indigency hearing. In another matter, the judge failed to follow the law and failed to maintain professional competence in the law when he allowed a litigant's 15-year old daughter to act as her interpreter when the daughter was also a fact witness in the case. In an effort to facilitate the proceedings, the daughter was allowed to provide testimony while serving as the litigant's interpreter. The manner in which the judge handled the trial injected unnecessary confusion into the proceedings and resulted in a confusing and undeveloped trial record which would have likely hindered either side from presenting key issues in the case on appeal. [Violation of Canons 2A and 3B(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning and Order of Additional Education of a Senior Judge. (05/01/14).
