U.S. judicial council tosses misconduct claims against Kavanaugh

[webfact]

U.S. judicial council tosses misconduct claims against Kavanaugh

By Andrew Chung

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh speaks during his ceremonial public swearing-in, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., October 8, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

(Reuters) - Scores of complaints accusing U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of improperly conducting himself during his contentious Senate confirmation process have been thrown out by a panel of eight federal judges.

 

The judges said the complaints of misconduct, including accusations that Kavanaugh made false, unduly partisan and disrespectful statements to senators, must be dismissed because he has been confirmed to the Supreme Court and the federal law governing judicial conduct applies only to lower court judges.

 

Kavanaugh was a federal appeals court judge when President Donald Trump appointed him in July. He was confirmed in October.

 

In all, 83 complaints were filed against Kavanaugh by "lawyers, doctors, professors and concerned citizens, among others," according to Chief Judge Timothy Tymkovich of the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge.

 

"Congress has not extended the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act to Supreme Court justices," Tymkovich wrote for the panel of judges, part of the Judicial Council of the 10th Circuit.

 

As they piled up at the Washington appeals court, U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts in October transferred the complaints to be handled by that council.

 

During hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Kavanaugh denied allegations that he sexually assaulted a California professor when the two were teenagers in Maryland in the 1980s. He levelled a partisan attack against Democratic senators, calling himself the victim of "a calculated and orchestrated political hit" fuelled by anger on the left at Trump's 2016 election win over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

 

A bitterly divided Senate voted 50-48 to confirm Kavanaugh.

 

Gabe Roth of Fix the Court, an advocacy group that pushes for Supreme Court transparency, said the judicial misconduct law badly needs to be rewritten.

 

"Today's decision," Roth added, "underscores the need for the Supreme Court to adopt its own code of conduct or for Congress to write one if the justices cannot be bothered."

 

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Will Dunham)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-12-19

[keith101]

So the rule of law doesnt apply to all especially fed judges .

[Tug]

That’s scary really scary

[Silurian]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

The judges said the complaints of misconduct, including accusations that Kavanaugh made false, unduly partisan and disrespectful statements to senators, must be dismissed because he has been confirmed to the Supreme Court and the federal law governing judicial conduct applies only to lower court judges.

 

Win the prize and avoid the oversight. 

 

So along with the shield of the presidency that protects Felonious Trump, the shield of the Supreme Court protects any Supreme Court judge from being charged with a crime.

 

I guess there are some people above the law in the USA.

 

[bendejo]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

"Today's decision," Roth added, "underscores the need for the Supreme Court to adopt its own code of conduct or for Congress to write one if the justices cannot be bothered."

 

Lotsa luck with that one!

 

 

[Jimbo1964]

I'm not from the US but aware of all the press coverage and I have a question to ask of my american contributors.

 

Before Kavanaugh was nominated, were there any complaints or allegations of misconduct about him or did this all spring up once he was nominated?

 

I note the article mentions about "Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge" But did anyone make a complaint then?

[Nyezhov]

1 hour ago, Silurian said:

I guess there are some people above the law in the USA.

The remedy is impeachment. Thats the way the system is set up.

 

2 minutes ago, Jimbo1964 said:

Before Kavanaugh was nominated, were there any complaints or allegations of misconduct about him or did this all spring up once he was nominated?

 

I note the article mentions about "Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge" But did anyone make a complaint then?

No.

[guest879]

innocent till proven guilty. I would bet the people filing the 83 complaints were all liberals. Americas trump/republican derangement syndrome is just getting crazy.

[Chomper Higgot]

12 minutes ago, guest879 said:

innocent till proven guilty. I would bet the people filing the 83 complaints were all liberals. Americas trump/republican derangement syndrome is just getting crazy.

Are you declaring the guilt of liberals without evidence?

 

 

[Trouble]

The complaints were obviously made by liberals because they did not like the fact that he was confirmed.  They basically made complaints about his comments in front of the Senate Committee. Just another way to attack something they don't like.  It would have been a farce to investigate all the complaints.  Just because you don't like the comments someone makes doesn't make it right to flood the system with judicial complaints not related to judicial matters.  Just another left wing tactic.  He was confirmed, people should learn to accept decisions, even if they don't like them sometimes.

[Chomper Higgot]

2 hours ago, Trouble said:

The complaints were obviously made by liberals because they did not like the fact that he was confirmed.  They basically made complaints about his comments in front of the Senate Committee. Just another way to attack something they don't like.  It would have been a farce to investigate all the complaints.  Just because you don't like the comments someone makes doesn't make it right to flood the system with judicial complaints not related to judicial matters.  Just another left wing tactic.  He was confirmed, people should learn to accept decisions, even if they don't like them sometimes.

It becomes a different matter when ‘comments made’ are lies and/or obfuscation made under oath.

[riclag]

5 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

It becomes a different matter when ‘comments made’ are lies and/or obfuscation made under oath.

Another  story

Edited December 20, 2018 by riclag

[riclag]

20 hours ago, guest879 said:

innocent till proven guilty. I would bet the people filing the 83 complaints were all liberals. Americas trump/republican derangement syndrome is just getting crazy.

 Article -"Gabe Roth of Fix the Court, an advocacy group that pushes for Supreme Court transparency, said the judicial misconduct law badly needs to be rewritten".

I hope my tax dollar doesn't go to this nonsense

 

"Fix the Court (FTC) is a left-of-center judicial policy organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. It is a project of the New Venture Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and major funding organization for left-wing organizations as well as the fiscal sponsor of a number of activist groups like FTC."^[1] [2]

^{https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/fix-the-court/}

Sounds like the same lot that was scratching at the Supreme Court door's and howling at the moon

Edited December 20, 2018 by riclag

[pedro01]

21 hours ago, Jimbo1964 said:

I'm not from the US but aware of all the press coverage and I have a question to ask of my american contributors.

 

Before Kavanaugh was nominated, were there any complaints or allegations of misconduct about him or did this all spring up once he was nominated?

 

I note the article mentions about "Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge" But did anyone make a complaint then?

 

Of course not. Just that there is a lot of butthurt going round after their plot to have a memory impaired accuser failed to stop his nomination.

 

These are just the last desperate death throes of that plot.

 

I imagine they'll come up with something else within the next few months. 

[Ahab]

22 hours ago, Jimbo1964 said:

I'm not from the US but aware of all the press coverage and I have a question to ask of my american contributors.

 

Before Kavanaugh was nominated, were there any complaints or allegations of misconduct about him or did this all spring up once he was nominated?

 

I note the article mentions about "Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge" But did anyone make a complaint then?

Everything sprang up after he was nominated. This guy had been vetted six or seven times previously for government positions or court appointments, without a hint of anything adverse. This was a sleazy smear job on an honorable man, the Democrats held this information until the confirmation hearings were finished in order to delay or derail his confirmation. Not a single question about these allegations were even asked during the regular hearings even though the Democrats had known about them for several months.

 

One of the most despicable and disgusting smears of a person for political purposes in my lifetime.

[riclag]

1 hour ago, Ahab said:

Everything sprang up after he was nominated. This guy had been vetted six or seven times previously for government positions or court appointments, without a hint of anything adverse. This was a sleazy smear job on an honorable man, the Democrats held this information until the confirmation hearings were finished in order to delay or derail his confirmation. Not a single question about these allegations were even asked during the regular hearings even though the Democrats had known about them for several months.

 

One of the most despicable and disgusting smears of a person for political purposes in my lifetime.

Indeed .Their reputations proceed themselves! The moon howling in the house will only get worse staring in January !  Mr. Graham will be revisiting  this grand TDS moment as well

 

 

Edited December 20, 2018 by riclag

[RPCVguy]

On 12/19/2018 at 11:08 AM, Jimbo1964 said:

I'm not from the US but aware of all the press coverage and I have a question to ask of my american contributors.

 

Before Kavanaugh was nominated, were there any complaints or allegations of misconduct about him or did this all spring up once he was nominated?

 

I note the article mentions about "Some complaints also related to Senate testimony Kavanaugh gave in 2004 and 2006 when he was a nominee to become a federal appeals court judge" But did anyone make a complaint then?

You've correctly assessed that the sexual issues were not raised until all else failed in the current confirmation cycle. I believe the women followed form of not speaking up - so often the system denounces the woman. there were though strong arguments and one complaint stemming from his 200 through 2006 confirmation battle. If the FBI had been allowed to track the details stated in his hearing, likely the location and confirmation of building ownership for the incident Dr. Ford described would have been found to match the diary entry on Judge Kavanaugh's calendar. The Republicans controlling the committee precluded that level of investigation.

The following links were written during that time frame - pointing to a lack of courtroom experience and being a known advocate for policies contrary to existing precedents.

►NY Times on what Democrats find troubling about Kavanaugh

►Leadership Conference on Civil Rights lists opposition to appellate court appointment

►CNN details the conflict just prior to that vote

►2007 Sen Durbin Letter: Washington Post and NPR stories contradict Kavanaugh testimony

That last link was also reported to the Justice department for a response - but it was stone walled and back-burnered.