Start at Disciplinary Counsel v. CarrYesterday’s decision:
The [Board of Professional Conduct] panel accepted the parties’ stipulations of fact and misconduct and issued a 58-page report recounting limited—but representative—examples of Carr’s admitted misconduct. Carr “ruled in her courtroom recklessly and cavalierly, unconstrained under the law or court’s rules,” and she “conducted business in an manner that befits a game host, rather than a Cleveland Municipal Court judge.” Carr’s conduct, according to the panel, “couldn’t help but seriously compromise integrity of court in the eyes and the business of all those who were there.” …
Count One—Issuing Capias Warrants and Making False Statements …
Count Two—Ex Parte Communications, Improper Plea Bargaining, and Arbitrary Dispositions …
Count Three—Improper Use of Capias Warrants and Bonds to Compel Payment of Fines and Costs …
Count Four—Lack of Decorum and Dignity Consistent with Judicial Office …
Count Five—Abuse of Contempt Power and Failure to Recuse …
The whole analysis is fascinating, and I’m unable to do justice. Here’s one more excerpt, though (from Count Three, as it happens, not Count Four):
Carr acknowledged at the hearing that she used capias warrants to force Carr to pay fines and costs. She tied the bond to the amount due and created an “modern-day debtor’s prison”. Carr abandoned this way of collecting fines or costs. The board was informed that Carr gave an open-court explanation and that it had been “characteristically colourful”.
It’s obvious that I’m not your bill collector at the Clerk’s Office. It’s not my job to collect your bills. Make your own money. Here you are, player. You can collect your own money player, mmhmm. You’re not my b-i t-c-h. Tell me, mmhmm. Mmhmm. Do you love them apples? Suckas.