On Thursday, July 3, 2025, WFAA reported that a Dallas County district judge has been publicly reprimanded by the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct for improper conduct during a Zoom hearing. The reprimand stems from an incident involving Judge Amber Givens, who presides over the 282nd Judicial District Court in Dallas.
The commission’s action follows an investigation into a bond hearing conducted on August 3, 2021, in the case of State of Texas v. Floyd Aaron. During this hearing, Judge Givens allowed her court coordinator, Arceola Warfield, to handle the proceedings without informing the participants that she was not presiding over the hearing. Although Judge Givens’ image was visible on screen, the parties heard an unidentified voice conducting the hearing, which led to confusion among those involved.
Defendant Floyd Aaron and his attorney, Tim Jeffrey, referred to the voice as “your honor” and “judge” without realizing it was not Givens. This misunderstanding prompted concerns, and the prosecutors involved reported the incident to Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot.
Upon learning of the report, Judge Givens expressed her discontent, labeling the allegations as “absurd” and “extremely troubling.” She indicated intentions to file a complaint against the Assistant District Attorney who made the report, once their identity was known.
The Texas Rangers Public Integrity Unit subsequently investigated the matter. Their findings included phone records indicating that Warfield had no calls on her office phone during the hearing. However, she did place an eight-second call to Judge Givens’ cell phone, which went to voicemail. In testimony provided to the commission in October 2022, Givens contradicted the findings of the Texas Rangers, claiming she had communicated during the hearing via speakerphone.
The Kaufman County District Attorney, Erleigh Norville Wiley, ultimately declined to pursue criminal charges against Givens in September 2023. While Wiley deemed Givens’ actions “unprofessional and improper,” she concluded they did not rise to the level of criminality.
Judge Givens’ attorney, Russell Wilson, released a statement asserting that Givens disagreed with the commission’s conclusions and reiterated her belief that the reprimand was politically motivated. He also noted that Givens would refrain from further comments on the issue.
The commission’s report also highlighted issues regarding Givens’ judicial temperament, with more than 100 recusal motions filed against her in 2022 by both prosecutors and defense attorneys. These motions accused her of bias, unfair rulings, disrespect towards attorneys, and a retaliatory nature.
The public reprimand, issued on June 23, 2025, confirmed that Givens violated several sections of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct during the hearing and in her conduct as a judge.
Source: WFAA
