Appeal Dismissed In Judicial Misconduct Matter

The Nevada Supreme Court granted dismissal of the appeal of a judicial discipline matter.

The order of the Commission on Judicial Discipline is linked here. 

The factual allegations in Count One of the Formal Statement of Charges regarding Respondent’s comments at the February 1, 2017 meeting of the Washoe County Domestic Violence Task Force (“Task Force”), and his failure to clarify such comments at the meeting, have been proven by clear and convincing evidence…

The Commission took note that Respondent testified he was misunderstood and never had a chance to clarify his statements. However, Respondent was given a chance to clarify his initial comment when he was asked at the Task Force meeting “what place would that be?”, and he responded, “the kitchen and the bedroom.” Respondent’s comments indicate his lack of sensitivity, poor word choice, and overall communication deficit which has been corroborated by his own colleagues, Judge McGee and Judge Hardy. As such, the Commission is ordering Respondent to attend a judicial education course to assist Respondent in understanding that the perception and interpretation of his words by others matters.

Sanction

The Commission did not believe Respondent’s testimony that he appropriately qualified or prefaced his comments. Furthermore, the Commission found that Respondent did not take full responsibility or learn from the incident in question. The Commission found it disturbing that Respondent’s apology was not taken as sincere by some of the witnesses who testified that Respondent did not appear to be apologetic for the comments themselves, but rather only that they were misinterpreted by others. Therefore, the Commission is requiring Respondent to pay a fine to the Domestic Violence Resource Center, and issue private written apologies to those who attended the Task Force meeting.

The Reno Gazette Journal reported in August 2018

Washoe County Judge Charles “Chuck” Weller faces possible suspension, probation or even a ban from the bench after allegedly making inappropriate remarks about women.

The Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline on Thursday opened a two-day hearing examining remarks the family court judge made at a meeting of the Washoe County Domestic Violence Task Force.

Weller was meeting with the task force in February 2017 when he said women should be worried about proposed cuts to the Violence Against Women Act.

Weller said the cuts “will put women back in their place,” according to formal misconduct charges the commission filed against him in January.

Margie Chavis, an employee at the Domestic Violence Resource Center, was among five women at the meeting. “Are you saying that we need to be in a place?” she asked.

“Yes, the kitchen and the bedroom,” Weller responded, according to the commission’s charging documents.

Thursday’s hearing saw a commission prosecutor lay out the case that Weller’s remarks ran afoul of several separate judicial conduct codes requiring judges to “act and speak with decorum” and avoid bias, prejudice or harassment.

The prosecutor, Kathleen Paustian, said Weller made repeated attempts to cover up the comments and keep them from going public.

A prosecution witness also raised the possibility that the judge found a way to retaliate against complainants employed at the Domestic Violence Resource Center, a longtime courtroom vendor that lost its contract with Washoe County roughly three months after Weller’s remarks first surfaced in the media.

“It crossed our minds,” said Denise Yoxsimer, the organization’s executive director, “but we just don’t have any evidence that (Weller) did so.”

Attorneys for Weller said the county had a number of reasons to back out of its agreement with the group.

They said the judge’s statements about a woman’s “place” were taken out of context, and argued in court briefs that his remarks addressed “political issues and matters of public importance,” that were not subject to a disciplinary hearing.

“Judge Weller is not the person he’s been portrayed to be,” attorney David Houston told commissioners. “He has never held those thoughts. He has never espoused those thoughts.

“There was no cover-up, there was only an attempt to correct.”

Weller did not immediately clarify what he meant by his contentious comments at the February 2017 task force meeting. Those remarks were initially reported to Sparks Chief of Police Brian Allen. Allen then filed a complaint with the commission.

Six days later, he sent a letter to then-Chief Judge Patrick Flanagan about his concerns. Weller then told Flanagan that his comments “can’t get out” to the public, according to commission prosecutors.

Weller later allegedly asked Chavis to talk to another task force member for him and tell her he does “great things.”

During an interview with the commission investigator, Weller reportedly admitted to making the remarks and said they weren’t a reflection of his own sentiment.  

Attorneys told commissioners his comments about a woman’s “place” were a reference to how some people in Washington D.C. — namely, those who supported defunding the Violence Against Women Act — seemed to feel about women.

A seven-member panel of commissioners will hear 15 hours of evidence before deciding whether to discipline Weller in September.

And also reported the disposition

Washoe County Judge Charles “Chuck” Weller was fined $2,500 and ordered to write apology letters and attend training classes after making inappropriate remarks about women at a meeting on domestic violence last year.

On Thursday, the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline found that Weller’s comments were “disturbing” and “offensive” and violated his duty to promote trust, impartiality and integrity, according to a court document on the commission’s findings.

Two of the three charges against him were dropped, which alleged he tried to keep the incident from the public and asked two women to clarify his comments to others on his behalf. 

The family court judge was at a meeting of the Washoe County Domestic Violence Task Force in February 2017 when he said women should be worried about proposed cuts to the Violence Against Women Act.

“Weller said the cuts ‘will put women back in their place,’” according to an ethics complaint filed in January.

Margie Chavez, an employee at the Domestic Violence Resource Center, was among five women at the meeting. She asked Weller, “Are you saying that we need to be in a place?”

“Yes, the kitchen and the bedroom,” Weller responded, according to the commission’s charging documents.

Weller never clarified what he meant, and Chavez reported the incident to the disciplinary commission investigator.

During the two-day hearing, Weller admitted to making the comments. He testified he wasn’t referring to his own opinion, but rather the opinion from those in Washington D.C. who were pushing for the funding cuts. 

Chief of Police Brian Allen also filed a complaint after hearing about Weller’s remarks through a victim advocate, who works with the Sparks Police Department. He also sent a letter to former Chief Judge Patrick Flanagan.

The disciplinary commission found Weller demonstrated a pattern of being misunderstood and misinterpreted, which was described as a “communication deficit.”

Allen testified as to “… how important words can be, especially coming from someone in a position of authority and power, such as a family court judge.”

The commission also found that his comments had a profound and negative impact on the women who attended the meeting last year.

Weller was ordered to take a training course within one year at his own expense. He must also write apology letters and pay a fine to the Domestic Violence Resource Center within 60 days.

If he fails to comply with the order, he could be permanently be removed from the bench, according to a court document.

The order does not specify the nature of the dismissed appeal. (Mike Frisch)