(C) Tennessee Lookout
This story was originally published by Tennessee Lookout and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
Judge in Tyre Nichols trial hit with rare public reprimand in fraud case connected to his wife – Tennessee Lookout [1]
['Anita Wadhwani', 'More From Author', '- August']
Date: 2023-08-09
James Jones, Jr., a Shelby County judge presiding over the trial of five former Memphis police officers charged in the death of Tyre Nichols, has been issued a rare public reprimand over his efforts to intervene in a Florida federal wire fraud case connected to his wife.
In March, Jones wrote letters vouching for the character of two individuals convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges in Florida. Jones’ letters asked a federal court to “show mercy in its sentencing” for the individuals that he and his wife “had the privilege to call friend,” according to the three-page letter of reprimand from the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct.
Judges are barred by court rules from providing character references for defendants in legal proceedings.
Jones’ letter also failed to disclose that Jones’ wife, who is not identified by name in the reprimand, was named as a co-defendant in a civil case that stemmed from the individuals’ criminal conduct. Jones’ wife was later removed from the civil suit, but the “lack of full disclosure under these circumstances can, and did, reasonably create an appearance of impropriety,” the reprimand said.
The letter was written on official court stationary, creating the appearance Jones was using his official position to further interests of individuals with active cases, and lending the prestige of his office for the personal benefit of others, contrary to state rules, the reprimand said.
The letter sent by Jones included his wife’s signature, also contrary to court rules.
“By permitting your spouse to sign the letters, you allowed a family member to leverage the prestige of judicial office to promote the personal interests of others with whom she has ties,” the reprimand said.
Jones admitted he wrote the letters and apologized in June, but in a follow up letter the following month he said he had been asked by the defendants’ lawyers to write the letters and was unfamiliar with “the full extent”. of their cases.
The Aug. 1 reprimand by the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct, released publicly on Monday, notes Jones fully cooperated with the investigation and accepts full responsibility.
Jones was elected in August 2022.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://tennesseelookout.com/2023/08/09/judge-in-tyre-nichols-trial-hit-with-rare-public-reprimand-in-fraud-case-connected-to-his-wife/
Published and (C) by Tennessee Lookout
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-ND 4.0.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/tennesseelookout/
