MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – An Alabama federal judge who was arrested on a spousal abuse charge last year has resigned from the bench.
U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller, 56, will resign effective Aug. 1, his attorney, Barry Ragsdale said Friday. The resignation comes after months of review by a judicial panel and calls from politicians in both political parties for Fuller to voluntarily step down.
Atlanta police arrested Fuller on a misdemeanor battery charge in August after his wife, Kelli Fuller, called police to the couple’s room at the Ritz Carlton in Atlanta.
Kelli Fuller told police her husband became violent when she accused him of cheating, pulling her hair, throwing her to the ground, and kicking her. Mark Fuller told officers he threw her to the ground to defend himself after she threw a drink glass at him while he watched television. A police report stated that Kelli Fuller “answered the door in tears” and had visible cuts on her mouth and forehead when police arrived.
Fuller reached a plea deal with prosecutors in Atlanta. The charge was dismissed and Fuller’s record expunged following about six months of once-a-week group counseling sessions.