State panel removes Contra Costa judge for ‘multiple acts of misconduct’

Second Contra Costa judge to be removed in 18 months

By ANNIE SCIACCA | asciacca@bayareanewsgroup.com and NATE GARTRELL | ngartrell@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: November 6, 2019 at 11:13 am | UPDATED: November 6, 2019 at 1:36 pm

MARTINEZ ­ A state judicial commission today tossed Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge John Laettner off the bench for “multiple acts of misconduct.”

The Commission on Judicial Performance, which disciplines judges, determined Laettner engaged in five instances of willful misconduct and 11 instances of prejudicial misconduct. The commission launched a formal investigation into Laettner last year into nine counts of bad conduct alleged by public defenders who appeared before him.

Laettner is the second Contra Costa judge to be removed for misconduct since late 2018, when the commission kicked ex-Judge Bruce C. Mills off the bench for multiple counts of misconduct.

Since 1995, only 11 judges have been removed by the commission before Laettner. It has more commonly issued public “admonishments” or censures against judges.

The commission found that Laettner denied due process to a criminal defendant by increasing her bail without a hearing and without her present in court, as well as having conversations about cases without all attorneys present.

The commission also found that Laettner engaged with women in the courthouse ­ including those who appeared in front of him as attorneys ­ in a manner that was “unwelcome, undignified, discourteous, and offensive” and that “constituted gender bias.” This included telling a deputy public defender she wasn’t spanked enough as a kid, and that he referred to another deputy public defender as a “young, attractive Asian woman.”

The case against Laettner ­ a former federal prosecutor ­ saw a bit of a role reversal for local district attorneys and defense attorneys. Several Contra Costa prosecutors rushed to Laettner’s defense, while public defenders went on the attack, advocating for him to be punished.

Laettner has been serving as a civil judge. He was in the middle of presiding over a complex lawsuit involving a separation, according to two attorneys familiar with the case.

Walnut Creek-based attorney Dan O’Malley, a former judge and failed candidate for District Attorney in 2010 who testified to Laettner’s character during the misconduct proceedings, called Laettner’s departure “so sad.”

“He’s a fine man and a fine judge,” O’Malley said. “That’s a horrible decision…I hope he appeals.”

The commission’s decision culminated a lengthy process that included a hearing before three judges who serve as special “masters” for the commission who determined Laettner “was not credible or not truthful as it relates to his testimony concerning several events making up this inquiry.”

The commission, made up of 11 people including six members of the public, three judges and two lawyers, stated in their decision that Laettner did not acknowledge that his behavior was improper. While most of the commission agreed with the factual findings, legal conclusions and with the decision to remove Laettner, three on the commission expressed a desire to censure him instead of removing him from the bench.

“Given our mandate to uphold high standards of judicial conduct, protect the public, and preserve the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary, it is Judge Laettner’s lack of candor during this proceeding, and his selective and limited acknowledgment of his misconduct, that leads us to conclude that removal from the bench is the appropriate discipline,” the commission wrote in its decision.

Laettner’s attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment on his removal, but have previously called the accusations against him a “smear campaign” by the public defender’s office.

Laettner took the stand in October in front of the full 11-member commission, and stated that he was working on improving the nature of his conversations with attorneys and now refrains from asking personal questions or commenting on people’s appearances.

But he insisted then that his conversation about the defendant’s bail was properly open.

When a commissioner asked Laettner if he believed the panel of judges was wrong in citing 10 instances of his testimony being “not credible,” Laettner said yes.

“I told the truth ­ the absolute truth,” he said at the hearing, adding that the commissioners “can decide who they find more credible.”

The commission’s decision becomes final in 30 days, subject to review from the California Supreme Court.

But according to a statement from Contra Costa Superior Court sent by Presiding Judge Barry Baskin, Laettner is already removed from the Contra Costa bench “pending the outcome of any appeal to the California Supreme Court.”

“The Court respects the decision of the Commission on Judicial Performance,” the statement says.

“The commission concluded that Judge Laettner’s misconduct, which was severely aggravated by his lack of candor during the proceedings and his selective and limited acknowledgment of that misconduct, warranted his removal from office,” the commission said in a statement posted online.



Check back for updates on this story.

https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2019/11/06/state-commission-removes-contra-costa-judge-from-bench-for-multiple-acts-of-misconduct/