► Judge Paul Hawkes of Tallahassee; pompous, moron, ethical gremlin Print
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Judge Paul Hawkes of Tallahassee pompous, moron, ethical gremlin

 
Unfortunately, Judge Paul Hawkes sits as the chief judge on the 1st District Court of Appeals in Tallahassee, Florida. Even more unfortunate is the fact that ex-Governor George Jeb Bush’s appointment of Hawkes to the bench in January 2003.
It is apparent that the sole reason that Hawkes was appointed to the bench by then Gov. Bush was because of his history of carrying water for the local Republican Party. Put simply, Paul Hawkes spent many, many years acting as a bootlicker for the local hacks in the Party.
 
Recently, the St. Petersburg Times along with the Orlando Sentinel, among others, reported that Judge Paul Hawkes has allegedly engaged in a plethora of judicial misconduct in promoting the expenditure of $48 million in taxpayer funds to build a new courthouse. The media has dubbed this disgraceful waste of taxpayer funds as the “Taj Mahal.”
 
Reports by St. Petersburg Times senior correspondent Lucy Morgan set forth how Judge Hawkes single-mindedly pursed a $48 million courthouse for himself and his judicial cohorts without any regard for judicial ethics or the appearance of neutrality. Hawkes apparently lobbied his so-called friends in the Legislature of money in pulling off a questionable last-minute deal in 2007.
 
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Judge Hawkes' "Taj Mahal" will consist of 110,000 square fee. With 124 employees that works out to almost 900 square foot per employee. Apparently, Judge Hawkes is following in the steps of ex-Ohio Chief Justice Thomas Moyer who coerced the state legislature to spend almost $120 million on his "Tah Mahal." The square footage per employee at the Ohio Supreme Court was 2,400, which is larger than most taxpayer's homes. Aren't Florida and Ohio great countries?
 
It cannot be disputed that Judge Hawkes is nothing more than a political hack that has absolutely no understanding of the manner in which a judge is expected to conduct himself. It is indeed quite disturbing to know that someone of Judge Hawkes’ ilk (FYI: Judge Hawkes – Ilk is not defined as a male ELK) is allowed to sit in judgment of the good citizens and voters in the greater Tallahassee area.
 
At least the voters in Tallahassee will have the chance on November 2, 2010 to tell Judge Hawkes to take a hike as the Editorial Board of the St. Petersburg Times opined on October 12, 2010.
 
Judge Hawkes shouldn’t be too concerned about finding a new job if the voters oust him from his undeserved judgeship. After all, I hear tell that the Wal-Mart at 3993 Tyrone Blvd. in St. Petersburg is taking applications for greeters. And that doesn’t bear any fruit for Judge Hawkes, there’s always bartender school.