As Sober As A Judge

A circuit court judge must adhere to an agreement to comply with treatment under the supervision of the Kentucky Lawyers Assistance Program (“KYLAP”).

The judge was the subject of 13 charges of misconduct and submitted to an evaluation. He disclosed that he drank 2-3 vodkas, 3-4 times a week “alone.”

He entered into an agreement in which he admitted ten violations and accepted a period of suspension followed by abstinence and monitoring by KYLAP.

He objected to the supervision and the sobriety requirement.

The Kentucky Supreme Court held him to his bargain, noting that the judge found the agreement “inconvenient and a detriment to the enjoyment of his time off the bench” but was nonetheless enforceable given the admitted misconduct.

The Lexington Herald Leader reported on the ethics case.

At the hearing Monday, Combs acknowledged he made harassing or contentious phone calls to city officials about several things, including a fine against his mother-in-law over a city ordinance, and that he used his official stationery to send city officials requests for information on nonjudicial matters.

Combs said he didn’t recall calling city officials derogatory names such as “cokehead” and “dumbo,” as the commission charged, but he said there was a good-faith basis for the charges.

He also admitted making improper calls to officers at the Pikeville Police Department, accusing them of making false arrests, hectoring them over people parking in the private lot of the church he attends, and calling police thieves and trash.

The conduct commission charged that in one case Combs told a police captain that the next officer who pulled Combs over would get a “bullet in the head.”

Combs said he did not recall that remark or calling officers names, but again acknowledged there was a basis for the charge.

The longtime judge also acknowledged he presided over cases involving Equitable Production, an oil and gas exploration company, without disclosing in the court record that he had a business relationship with the company.

Combs is part owner of a company that leased drilling rights to Equitable. He allegedly made a belligerent call to Equitable at one point, accusing the company of shorting him on lease payments during a time the company had a case in his court, though he gave up that case.

Combs said that his tie to the company was well known and that he thought he had disclosed it properly.

Combs also acknowledged a charge that he improperly took part in political activity, including chastising people for supporting certain candidates.

He criticized city commission members before the 2014 election and expressed an interest in the outcome, but then he presided over a lawsuit challenging the election and disqualified a candidate, according to the charges.

The commission dismissed a charge that Combs posted improper comments on the gossip website Topix, and parts of two other charges were dismissed.

(Mike Frisch)