A former prosecutor has confessed to assisting a state district judge who is accused of texting clandestine messages from the bench to bolster the prosecution's case during an East Texas criminal trial last year.So not only is the judge who texted advice to prosecutors still on the bench, the assistant prosecutor accused of passing on her texts has herself been elected state district judge! What an embarrassment. Further evidence that the mechanisms for holding prosecutors and judges accountable for misconduct in Texas simply aren't effective or functional.
Such communication by Polk County Judge Elizabeth Coker was a violation of judicial impartiality that's required during court proceedings, said the former Polk County Assistant District Attorney Kaycee Jones. Jones has since been elected as a state district judge for Polk, Trinity and San Jacinto counties.
Her confession and a photo copy of Coker's text message - detailing a line of witness questioning that would aid prosecutors - were outlined in a letter Jones sent to the Texas Bar Association's disciplinary counsel, which is investigating the incident. The Houston Chronicle, which first reported the allegations against Coker earlier this year, recently obtained a copy of the letter.
For her part, Jones wrote, "I deeply regret that I acted in this manner. It was wrong and I knew better." An official in Jones' office said she could not comment on a pending investigation.
A report by a court observer from the DA's office found that this was "not the first time" the judge had provided such ex parte assistance and the lead prosecutor said her second chair was "in her ear all the time regarding information she believes to be given her by Judge Coker via text during trial," not just in this case but in others. Further, "Besides complaints about Coker coaching prosecutors by dictating questions, complaints have been filed against her alleging discrimination in picking attorneys to handle indigent cases."
As Mark Bennett pointed out, the surprise here isn't that a prosecution-oriented judge coached the state's attorney ex parte but that she did so in a form that could be documented and traced instead of face to face. Pretty darn brazen.
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27 comments:
This kind of conduct comes as a surprise??? Many judges used to be prosecutors and the bonds of brotherhood are not easily severed.
Anybody in Polk County trying to get new trials based on this behavior. I would think any trial involving either of these two corrupt judges would be tainted if harm could be shown. Why on earth are these two ethically deficicient judges still being allowed to hear cases while these grievances are litigated?
Despite the judge's "assistance" to the State, the defendant in the underlying case was acquitted. Doesn't render the behaviour any less outrageous. Just an interesting note.
This kind of thing isn't going to end until there are severe consequences for the offenders. They should have Wendy Richards people fill up their courtrooms and yell at them.
Not surprised at all- Robert Langham-I agree 100%
AT least she was not texting while driving...
Jefferson warned us about judicial tyranny and albeit he directed his arguments against the federal Judiciary (Executive) it should be pointed out he also made it clear that when one combines the power of state and local Judiciary with that of the executive legislation it makes for judicial tyranny.
Other warnings about granting so much power to the Supreme Court Judges:
“Nothing in the Constitution has given them [the federal judges] a right to decide for the Executive, more than to the Executive to decide for them. . . . The opinion which gives to the judges the right to decide what laws are constitutional and what not, not only for themselves, in their own sphere of action, but for the Legislature and Executive also in their spheres, would make the Judiciary a despotic branch.” ~ Thomas Jefferson (Letter to Abigail Adams, September 11, 1804)
"The Constitution, on this hypothesis, is a mere thing of wax in the hands of the judiciary, which they may twist and shape into any form they please.” ~ Thomas Jefferson (Letter to Judge Spencer Roane, Sept. 6, 1819)
“You seem . . . to consider the judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions; a very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy. Our judges are as honest as other men, and not more so . . . and their power [is] the more dangerous, as they are in office for life and not responsible, as the other functionaries are, to the elective control. The Constitution has erected no such single tribunal, knowing that to whatever hands confided, with corruptions of time and party, its members would become despots.” ~ Thomas Jefferson (Letter to William Jarvis, Sept. 28, 1820)
Impeach and remove Jones.
Charge, indict and convict Coker of something dammit.
Where is our vaunted 'Judicial Ethics' board or committee or whatever?
Prosecutorial immunity must go.
Judges who think they're just an extension of the DA's office should be efficaciously hung from the nearest lamppost.
Harris County has a DA who was a judge, and during his shade the truth campaign seemed to view judging as being an extension of prosecuting...that would be the execrable Mr.Anderson.
I smell appeals!
These two unethical, cheating, texting judges remind me of "smart" students in law school who when stumped by the Socratic method would scratch their chin, looking as though they were considering their answer all the while stalling while waiting for an unethical classmate to instant message a response to their laptop. The student would then act as though he/she had just found the answer by reviewing their notes. Next thing you know ADAs in trial will be texting the answers to their witness's smartphone so they don't have to woodshed them. Why in the world would these smartass judges still have a bench a year after this kind of beyond the pale behavior. It shows a lack of maturity, ethics and temperament required of a judge or even an ADA with the responsibilty to do justice. Criminal prosecution is not a game and should not be subject to childlike judges and prosecutors with a stunted sense of ethics that too often result in loss of freedom for innocent people.
Well i saw it with my own eyes and saw someone get 15 yrs that shouldnt have!
I beleive it was personal n i am sad how can we fight this corrupted folks..
In the infamous Mineola Swingers Club trial in Smith County, it was reported that Jack Skeen was coaching the prosecutor during breaks. Skeen probably doesn't know what a text is so he just does it the old-fashioned way. This was only one of many, many, many unethical actions during that trial. And, of course, these are not at all unusual for Skeen. And, although I'm pretty sure his behavior during that trial (including his creation of ad hoc rules of evidence as documented by the appeals court) was reported to the Judicial Conduct Commission, nothing happened.
If the state bar continues not discipline its members, the political hacks in Austin will. If you think things are bad now, just wait till that happens.
"not to discipline..."
Problems like this one and worst are going on in Tarrant County Family Courts
Responding, I should have made clear, to "hostile elite."
Nothing is happening (regarding the vetting & refereeing of; law enforcement, seeking justice & rules of court enforcement and the accountability factor) because we the public at large expect someone else to take time to address it.
As of today, 15 or so people learned about this unisolated incident 'here' due to the media focusing on BS trials. Can you guess how many of us will take time to email, write and or call the Gov. and Attny. Gen. Off. asking them to uphold the law that's being ignored?
Stupid taxpayers that blindly pick up the tabs and dumbass voters that vote just to be voting conbined with a lazy / too tired public at large = the Texas twilight zone, where rinse & repeate is a commone everyday bidness asusual theme.
What a damn shame.
If someone launches a petition to bring Skeen up on the ignored charges, I think we can get 100, 000 signatures in less than a month.
And additional petitions addressing these scumbags in Polk County would no doubt bring out thousands that are ready to see accountability carried out. Any humnan that rec, probation or prison time relating to any of these cheaters should be addressed & vetted. Check the entire barrel.
It would stand to reason that judges themselves should be considerate of a 'Higher Power' and authority. When mankind thinks that their way is inscrutible, despotism fuelled by hunger, nee starvation for power - becomes the 'law of the land.' Corruption in the Judiciary is not unheard of by any means, but with whom does it lie to keep the house in order and the skeleton's out of the closets?
Sleeze exists at levels of society. Shame
Sleeze exists at all levels of society.
Not sure if that judge came from the ranks of the prosecutors, but there should be a statute that prohibits a former prosecutor from being a judge over a criminal trial for at least 5 years after being an attorney for the state. Consider the implications in a civil setting: general counsel for, say, Dell computers gets elected to the district bench. Then the day after investiture a new case comes on the docket, Dell v. So-an-So. Surely that judge would face recusal as his/her former employer is a party. Is it any different than a prosecutor being elected judge, and having the State of Texas as a party for a criminal case the first day on the bench? Even the judges on our Texas Supreme Court, like Justice Willett, recuses himself when the Tex. A.G. is a party because he used to work for them. If it is worthy of recusal in a civil case at our highest court based on work done over a decade ago when there is money on the line, then surely we can have a 5-year "cooling off" period in a criminal case where someone's liberty and freedom are on the line based on work less than 5 years ago. I also think it would give a former state attorney insight into the private practice of law that criminal defense attorneys deal with such as non-paying clients and such so that when a defense attorney asks for a continuance or withdrawal for non-payment there is a real-world context to the request rather than the judge having no idea what it means to be in private practice.
For what it's worth, Judge Coker was never a prosecutor.
You know, so many Judges are Da's running for office while still prosecuting. How about a law that prohibits such? It is a real problem in Bexar County.
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