On Tuesday, August 23, 2022, the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit entered an order denying a petition for review filed by an unnamed complainant in the judicial conduct proceeding relating to a district judge.
According to the complaint, the complainant was convicted of multiple counts set forth in a superseding indictment following a jury trial. In his judicial complaint, he refers to the superseding indictment as a “barred document” and claims that the subject judge committed misconduct by allowing the document to be filed in her court in violation of his Fifth Amendment rights. The complainant claims that, in accepting the superseding indictment, the subject judge “violated her oath of office and committed treason to the Constitution.”
On July 21, 2022, Chief Judge Roger L. Gregory, of the United States for the Fourth Circuit, dismissed the judicial complaint.
The Memorandum and Order reads:
“Complainant’s challenge to the subject judge’s filing and acceptance of the superseding indictment is merits-related and, therefore, is subject to dismissal. The complainant may not pursue his disagreement with the subject judge’s rulings through a complaint of judicial misconduct. Furthermore, the complainant’s allegations that the subject judge violated her oath of office and committed treason “lack[] sufficient evidence to raise an inference that misconduct has occurred…
Accordingly, this judicial complaint is dismissed as merits-related and lacking in evidentiary support pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 352(b)(1)(A)(ii), (iii).
IT IS SO ORDERED.”
The complainant filed a petition for review on August 1, 2022, and an amended petition for review on August 5, 2022. The Court of Appeals denied the petition without comment or explanation.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
