On Tuesday, August 6, 2024, Bloomberg Law reported that the Alaska US Attorney’s office had identified 21 additional criminal cases that may have required former US District Court Judge Joshua Kindred to recuse himself due to potential conflicts of interest.

The cases were listed in a letter sent on August 2nd to Alaska’s Chief Federal Public Defender, Jamie McGrady. In the letter, prosecutors acknowledged that Judge Kindred “may have had an obligation to recuse himself” from these matters. Many of the cases involved appearances by former senior litigation counsel Karen Vandergaw, who an earlier judicial investigation found had an inappropriate personal relationship with Judge Kindred involving flirtatious text messages and nude photos.

Vandergaw has since been effectively demoted from her previous role. The 21 new cases raise the total number of matters flagged by prosecutors that may have presented conflicts to over 40. Several of the recently identified cases involved other prosecutors besides Vandergaw playing a primary role, though she participated to some extent, such as appearing at a single proceeding.

In other cases, Vandergaw had withdrawn as counsel in the last few weeks, likely due to the investigation into Judge Kindred. However, in her former senior position, Vandergaw would have been able to present cases to grand juries, apply for warrants, and offer legal guidance on any cases Judge Kindred oversaw. McGrady expressed concern that conflicts may extend beyond Vandergaw to other senior managers as well.

Some of the cases flagged include criminal trials that have already resulted in convictions and incarceration. Defense attorneys will likely seek to reopen these matters, arguing the defendants were denied a fair trial due to the judge’s undisclosed conflicts. Indeed, last month, one attorney already filed to overturn a cyberstalking conviction on these grounds.

McGrady’s office is hiring more appellate attorneys to handle anticipated requests for relief. Additional resources have also been requested from other federal defender offices to deal with the scope of this potential crisis in the integrity of Alaska’s federal court system.

Senator Lisa Murkowski has called on the Justice Department to investigate related whistleblower claims concerning retaliation against those who uncovered this misconduct. The full impact of this scandal is still developing.

 

 

Source: Bloomberg Law