Judge asks for reprimand instead of removal (caught drunk driving)

[The Straight Story]

Judge asks for reprimand instead of removal
SANTA MARIA, Calif. (AP) - A superior court judge in Santa Maria who is facing allegations of drunken driving, campaign-finance fraud and inappropriate courtroom behavior wants a reprimand rather than removal from the bench.

Judge Diana Hall's lawyer says in documents filed with the Commission on Judicial Performance that his client has admitted serious wrongdoing and that she wasn't a threat to the public or the judiciary.

The commission's attorney filed a brief last week asking that she be removed. She currently remains on the job.

http://www.kget.com/news/state/story.aspx?content_id=15C510AE-332B-49C2-A593-7DEACF0A5363

[uppityperson]

1. driving drunk once=a threat.

[Hubert Flottz]

2. "ZERO TOLERANCE"

"Nobody is above the law!"

[Richard Steele]

5. "Campaign Finance FRAUD"- a much bigger problem.

One DUI might be an honest mistake, a one-time event, whatever.
There's still reasonable doubt- maaaaybe the person isn't
NECESSARILY unfit to be a judge.

But FRAUD, and 'inappropriate courtroom behavior'- No way,
no chance, nohow. Toss that judge so hard they bounce!

[Canuckistanian]

3. Do you get to make recommendations for your own sentencing?

I never knew that.

[MADem]

4. AWWWWWWWW

Say, gee, what's a little drunken driving, campaign-finance fraud and inappropriate courtroom behavior between friends?

Good grief, that's chutzpah on two legs!

[DURHAM D]

6. Ahh Judges - they get by with so much. Example -

When I was in high school the local district judge came around the corner and hit my car - knocking it into my sister's car; which was thrust forward into my brother's car. All three of our cars sustained minor damage. Then he put his car into reverse and backed up - knocking over the picket fence of the family across the street. Next, he put the car in forward gear - came back across the street and ran into my mother's car(which was up in our driveway)causing major damage and knocking over our brick fence. Then he backed up and attempted to drive on down the street to his house about six houses down. His car was badly damaged so he could not quite get there. He got out and walked home.

You can not imagine what our front yard looked like when all three of us kids and my mother got to the front porch - it absolutely looked like a tornado had come through.

We called the police. They went to his house and found him asleep in bed. He was not charged with drunk driving or leaving the scene or anything that I am aware of.

To make this scene even more humorous the 10 year old girl that lived across the street (the house with the picket fence) was standing on her head in their front yard during this entire episode. She watched the whole thing upside down. She was still on her head when I walked across the street to ask her what had happened. She was trying to break her personal record for how long she could stand on her head and really did not want to be bothered.

Our whole family continues to laugh about the day the bomb landed in our front yard.