| ► Judge Judith Hawkins of Tallahassee; ethical leprechaun |
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Judge Judith Hawkins of Tallahassee; ethical leprechaun
The state of Florida presented Judith Warren Hawkins with a law license in 1985 after she graduated from Florida State University Law School.
In 1996, Judith duped the voters in the Tallahassee area into electing her as 2nd District Court Judge.
Judith is a double-threat in that she is a member of the two most ethical professions in the United States; first she’s an attorney, and secondly she’s a practicing minister.
The Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission has charged Judge Judy with the following misconduct.
Original charges filed in December 2013, state that Judy sold study guides and used her judicial office, staff and equipment to financially propel her side business, Gaza Road Ministries.
The newest charges filed in June 2013, state the Judge withheld information and deleted financial records related to the ongoing inquiry in to allegations that she was running the Gaza Road Ministries from her judicial chambers.
The Judicial Commission’s charges stated in part:
“Your [Judy] responses to the Commission at the hearing, at your deposition, and in response to discovery create a pattern of conduct demonstrating a refusal to comply with lawful authority, misleading through incompleteness, and lacking the candor [truthfulness] expected of a judicial officer.”
The new charges state that Judge Judy deleted financial records about the Gaza Road Ministries business from her work computer the morning that the Judicial Commission took her deposition according to official court records. She also mislead the commission about her efforts to separate judicial duties from her side ministry business, the use of her judicial assistant for the business during work hours, money paid to her assistant for that work and he refusal to produce court-ordered materials to the commission.
The new charges state Hawkins deleted financial records about the business from her work computer the morning of her deposition in the JQC case, court records show. Other charges include misleading the commission about her efforts to separate judicial duties from the side business, the use of her judicial assistant for the business during work hours, money paid to her assistant for that work and failure to produce court-ordered materials. (Tallahassee Democrat)
Because Judicial Misfits in Florida are held to a much lower standard of conduct then everyone else, its likely that Judith will never be charged with theft of government property of services or perjury for lying under oath during commission proceedings.
All that’s left now is to see what punishment the Florida Supreme Court will mete out to Judge Hawkins for her egregious misconduct. Given its deplorable record, Judith will likely receive a complimentary reprimand.
As we speak (ca. June 2013) Judith remains sitting as a judge in Leon County, Florida.
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