On Thursday, October 6, 2022, the Alabama Court of the Judiciary issued a scheduling order relating to the misconduct complaint against James T. Patterson, judge of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama.
The judge was charged with violating the Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics, including Canon 1, Canon 2A8, Canon 2B, Canon 3A(2), Canon 3A(3), Canon 3A(1), and Canon 3A(4).
These ethics rules generally require:
A judge should uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary.
A judge should participate in… maintaining…and should himself observe high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the judiciary may be preserved.
A judge should conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
A judge should at all times maintain the decorum and temperance befitting the office and should avoid conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice which brings the judicial office into disrepute.
A judge should maintain order and decorum in proceedings before him. A judge should be patient, dignified, and courteous to litigants, jurors, witnesses, lawyers, and others with whom he deals in his official capacity.
A judge should respect and comply with the law and should conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
A judge should at all times maintain the decorum and temperance befitting the office and should avoid conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice which brings the judicial office into disrepute.
A judge should be faithful to the law and maintain professional competence in it.
A judge should accord to every person who is legally interested in a proceeding, full right to be heard according to law.
In June 2022, Judge Patterson was suspended after the Judicial Inquiry Commission accused him of two types of misconduct – abuse of judicial authority and inappropriate demeanor.
According to the complaint, Judge Patterson referred to Governor Kay Ivey as “Governor MeMaw” on multiple occasions to attorneys and court staff. The judge is also accused of using an Asian accent when asking a jury pool that included Asian Americans whether everyone spoke “Engrish” while imitating an offensive, stereotypical Asian accent.
Additionally, the complaint alleged that Judge Patterson abused his judicial authority by declaring acts and statutes regarding court fees unconstitutional and issuing an order redirecting court funds to address budgetary concerns. While doing so, Judge Patterson denied the full right to be heard belonging to every person legally interested in a proceeding, including the Attorney General.
On July 11, 2022, Judge Patterson filed an answer to the complaint, denying all the allegations and demanding strict proof.
In a scheduling order issued on October 6, 2022, the Court of the Judiciary announced that the public hearing will occur on October 27, 2022.
The scheduling order states:
“Pursuant to Court of the Judiciary Rule 16, a public hearing is set on October 27, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. in the courtroom of the Alabama Supreme Court, third floor, Heflin-Torbert Judicial Building, 300 Dexter
Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama, for the court to consider a possible resolution to this matter.”
The Judge earned a law degree from Cumberland School of Law in 2000.
The Judge is in Courtroom 6300, 205 Government Street in Mobile, and can be reached at (251) 574-8474 https://mobile.alacourt.gov/judges/james-patterson/.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
