Judge Nix Quits

Cobb County Ga. Chief Judge Kenneth  Nix was reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution to have abruptly announced his resignation the other day.  The way it was reported you suspected that there was more to the story, this AM correspondent Debra Cassens Weiss at the ABAJournal collects and reports all the accounts.  It turns out that Judge Nix, was being, um....inappropriate.  Here's the ABAJournal summary:

"Judge Kenneth Nix announced Tuesday that he will retire on Oct. 4, the day of his 71st birthday, according to stories by the Fulton County Daily Report, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Marietta Daily Journal. Nix told the Marietta Daily Journal in an earlier story that, after the photo shoot with the two women, he 'flicked them both on the fanny.' The newspaper published the lap photo.

'That was a stupid, stupid mistake,' Nix told the Marietta Daily Journal. 'I don't think that's sexual harassment. I think it's stupid of me to do it. It may be improper touching, but it's not to be such that you know I should be whatever.'

The women, Assistant District Attorney Susan Treadaway and deputy investigator Glenda Roberts, said in a statement that what happened during the photo shoot was 'more serious than reported,' the Marietta Daily Journal says. The women said they had visited Nix’s office to say good-bye to him after a courtroom reassignment.

'The judge asked us to sit on his knee just like he does to other female attorneys every Christmas when he is wearing his Santa Claus suit. He is a 70-year-old man and even though we both were reluctant to grant his request, it is sometimes difficult to say no to a grandfatherly figure and it would have been awkward. What happened later was a crime when he inappropriately touched us. What occurred was more serious than was reported.'

Nix told the Fulton County Daily Report that he is resigning to avoid an investigation into his conduct. According to the story, 'He said he also feared an exploration into possibly other issues that could embarrass him and his family.'  District Attorney Patrick Head and the two women say they did not file an ethics complaint against the judge or take any legal action. Head said Nix’s retirement is 'disturbing' and he is 'a well-respected jurist and has served with distinction for many years.'

The vice-chair of the Judicial Qualifications Commission, Judge John Allen of Muscogee County Superior Court, echoed that assessment. 'I've known Ken for many years,' he told the Fulton County Daily Report. 'He is one of the finest judges and persons I've ever had the privilege of knowing. His retirement will be a loss to the public.'"
_______________________
This is bullshit.  The apologists for Nix, and Nix's minimization of his sexual harassment of the public servants under his authority enrages me.  Women attorneys, women in the workplace do not deserve to be treated this way.  This guy was pulling this bullshit for years.  Good riddance.

BJs for the Sheriff--More Bad Sheriff Day

Courthouse News Service is report on the Texas Sheriff, Bill Keating (pic) who solicited sexual favors from female inmates and the  wives of men in trouble with the law.  This is Dan McCue's report:

"The former sheriff of Montague County (near Wichita Falls, Tx) used his position to demand 'blow jobs' and other sexual favors from female inmates and other women whose relatives or husbands were entangled with the law, three alleged victims claim in Federal Court.  The women say the county failed to stop or prevent former Sheriff Bill Keating from 'coercing, intimidating, and threatening' women who relied on him to deliver justice.

Two of the three alleged victims, Lashana Dykes and Dawnita Knight, say they were repeatedly targeted for sexual assault and harassment by Keating. The third plaintiff, Shelley Lemon, says Keating made several inappropriate sexual propositions after he let her severely disabled husband off on a probation violation.

Keating allegedly visited Lemon's home after a warrant was issued for her husband, who had recently suffered two severe strokes that left him 'confused' and 'child-like.' Lemon says she offered Keating a cup of tea, which he declined, stating, 'what I really need is a good piece of ass.' He then 'demanded that Lemon 'owed him a favor' in return for his efforts in getting the warrant lifted and explicitly stated that he thought he was entitled to a 'blow job,' the lawsuit states.

Lemon says she 'put him off' that day, but later enlisted the help of police investigators after Keating kept calling to try to 'arrange a sexual encounter.'  Investigators allegedly asked her to wear a wire during her next meeting with Keating. Suspicious, the sheriff cooled his advances, but asked a community 'snitch' -- a local drug addict whom he allegedly paid for sex -- whether she thought Lemon could be trusted, according to the complaint. Lemon says she moved to Waco, Texas, because she feared for her life after Keating found out that she had been talking to police.

Dykes claims that within hours of her arrest, Keating drove her to a remote area in his patrol car and asked for oral sex. When she declined, he began rubbing her breast and between her legs, the lawsuit claims. When she continued to resist, he allegedly offered her cigarettes, marijuana and meth, which she also turned down.

She says Keating called her into his office about a month later. He allegedly handcuffed her when she arrived, telling her that 'today is your lucky day.' He then 'bent Dykes over his desk then pulled down her pants and told Dykes that they were going to do some 'role playing,' the lawsuit states.

'Keating pull (sic) down his own pants and tried to rape Dykes in his office,' the complaint states. But his plans were foiled when a jailer knocked on the door, she claims. 

Knight says her severe depression made her 'easy prey' for the sheriff. Although she resisted his overt sexual advances, she says she was repeatedly taken to his office to give him massages and watch porn on his office computer while she sat on his lap. Knight said she was twice required to have sex with a male jail trustee and was constantly reminded of her jailers' power over her. She was ultimately transferred to another jail by state officials.

The three women have sued Montague County for alleged civil rights violations.  They say the county is liable for failing to properly train and supervise its employees, allowing the sexual victimization of inmates by jail staff, fostering and encouraging such abuse, and failing to redress the situation."
_________________________
Consider the vulnerability of these women, and the incredible power of the Sheriff.   When one inmate makes an allegation, . . . you know what I mean.  When three make the claim with the sort of detail you have here, I think you might have something.