| Action |
Date Issued |
Summary |
| Private Reprimand of a Judicial District Judge (09/01/2015) |
09/01/2015 |
The judge inappropriately used public resources, including but not limited to court property, time, and letterhead, to retaliate against a political opponent and to pressure colleagues into interceding in the opponent's political campaign. The judge's conduct toward the political opponent outweighed any matters of legitimate public concern raised by the judge in a press conference, described by the media as "bizarre," and undermined public confidence in the judiciary and administration of justice. [Violation of Canons 2A, 2B, 3B(2), 3B(4) and 4A of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct and Article V, §1-a(6)A of the Texas Constitution.] Private Reprimand of a District Judge. 09/01/2015. |
| Private Warning and Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge 09/01/2015 |
09/01/2015 |
The judge failed to comply with the law and demonstrated a lack of professional competence in the law by enforcing local rules that unfairly punished defendants for the dilatory conduct of their attorneys and by enforcing such rules in an unreasonable, inconsistent, arbitrary and inflexible manner. The judge also failed to comply with the law and demonstrated a lack of professional competence in the law by intervening in a proceeding involving the judge's own recusal. [Violations of Canons 2A, 3B(2) and 3B(8) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning & Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge. 09/01/2015. |
| Private Reprimand and Order of Additional Education of a Judicial District Court Judge 09/10/2015 |
09/10/2015 |
The judge's email to a colleague presiding over a custody case involving members of the judge's own family constituted an improper use of the prestige of judicial office to advance the private interests of the judge's family and raised concerns that the judge was using the prestige of judicial office to influence another judge to rule favorably on a pending motion. [Violation of Canon 2B of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct]. Private Reprimand & Order of Additional Education of a District Judge. 09/10/2015. |
| Private Reprimand and Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge |
09/21/2015 |
The judge failed to be patient, dignified, and courteous toward litigants and failed to afford these litigants the right to be heard according to law. [Violation of Canons 3B(4) and 3B(8) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Reprimand & Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge. 09/21/2015. |
| Private Warning of Former County Judge |
11/06/2015 |
The judge authorized candidates to use the judge's name and judicial title in campaign literature that constituted public endorsements of various candidates for public office. The judge failed to cooperate with the Commission's investigation. [Violation of Canon 5(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning of a Former County Judge. 11/06/2015. |
| Private Warning and Order of Additional Education of JP (11/06/2015) |
11/06/2015 |
The judge failed to follow the law and demonstrated a lack of professional competence in the law by denying litigants and members of the public, including Commission staff, access to the courtroom while judicial proceedings were taking place. [Violation of Canons 2A and 3B(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning & Order of Additional Education of a Justice of the Peace. 11/06/2015. |
| Private Admonition of a County Court at Law Judge (02/19/2016) |
02/19/2016 |
The judge lent the prestige of judicial office to advance the private interests of a particular advocacy/special interest group and engaged in extra-judicial conduct that raised a question as to the judge's capacity to be fair and impartial by refusing to remove the courtroom display of an award received from the organization after defense attorneys complained and other judges expressed that the display was problematic. [Violation of Canons 2B and 4A(1) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct and Article V, §a(6)A of the Texas Constitution.] Private Admonition of a Country Criminal Court at Law Judge. 02/19/2016. |
| Private Warning and Order of Additional Education of Justice of the Peace (03/29/2016) |
03/29/2016 |
The judge failed to comply with the law and demonstrated a lack of professional competence in the law to the extent that the judge used the peace bond process to improperly enjoin a litigant from exercising her rights to free speech under the United States and Texas Constitutions. [Violation of Canons 2A and 3B(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning & Order of Additional Education of a Justice of the Peace. 03/29/2016. |
| Private Warning and OAE of County Court at Law Judge |
|
The judge failed to maintain proper courtroom decorum and failed to treat these individuals with the appropriate dignity and courtesy required of a judicial officer. [Violation of Canons 3B(3) and 3B(4) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning & Order of Additional Education of a County Court at Law Judge. 04/25/16. |
| Private Warning of Former Associate Judge |
|
The judge failed to comply with the law by driving while intoxicated, a criminal offense to which she later pled guilty. [Violation of Canon 2A of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning of a Former Associate Judge. 05/02/16. |
| Private Order of Additional Educatin of Justice of the Peace |
|
The judge failed to comply with the law and failed to maintain professional competence in the law when she failed to accept a letter as a plea of not guilty and instead instructed the defendant that the only option to resolve the outstanding warrants was to pay the fines and costs. The Commission concluded the letters between the judge and defendant constituted improper ex parte communication concerning the merits of the pending case and the judge failed to share the communication with the prosecutor. [Violation of Canons 2A, 3B(2) and 6C(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct. Private Order of Additional Education to a Justice of the Peace. 07/13/16. |
| Private Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge (07/18) |
|
The judge erred by failing to secure a written jury trial waiver from litigant or by failing to create a contemporaneous record indicating that the litigant knowingly and voluntarily waived such a right orally. [Violation of Canons 2A and 3B(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Order of Additional Education of a Municipal Court Judge. 07/18/16. |
| Priv Reprimand and OAE of JP (07/28/16) |
|
The judge failed to maintain professional competence in the law, allowed the relationship of a family member to influence the judge's judgment and conduct, acted with bias toward the family member, and took action in a judicial proceeding in which the judge was disqualified by law when the judge: (1) magistrated the family member; (2) issued the family member a PR bond and (3) secured the family member's release after 5:00 p.m. without the Sheriff's authorization. [Violation of Canons 2A, 2B, 3B(1), 3B(2) and 3B(5) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Reprimand and Order of Additional education of a Justice of Peace. 07/28/16. |
| Private Warning of a Municipal Court Judge (08/26/16) |
|
The judge failed to comply with the law when she participated in proceedings relating to her own recusal by having an attorney attempt to depose the State's attorneys and actively challenge the State's efforts to have her recused. The judge pursued a challenge of the recusal motion out of a fear that her reputation would be harmed by false allegations set forth in the motion. [Violation of Canons 2A and 3B(2) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.] Private Warning of a Municipal Court Judge. 08/26/16. |
