It is not only the direct harm caused by cases of judicial misconduct that is troubling. It is also the damage that such behavior does to the public’s faith in our legal system.
That faith took a blow recently when the U.S. Senate convicted a federal judge on four articles of impeachment.
To illustrate how serious the misdeeds of U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Porteous of Louisiana were, he was only the eighth federal judge in history whom Congress has removed.
Porteous, an appointee of President Bill Clinton, apparently developed problems with drinking and gambling. House of Representatives prosecutors said that led him to take cash and other favors from lawyers and bail bondsmen who had business with his court. In addition, he lied to Congress during his confirmation hearings and filed for bankruptcy under a false name.
Two attorneys who had worked with Porteous testified that at one point they gave him $2,000 stuffed in an envelope just prior to his ruling in favor of their client in a civil case. A bail bondsman said that in exchange for fancy meals, trips and other perks, Porteous made sure the bondsman got the maximum fees possible.