The Kansas Commission on Judicial Conduct issued a cease and desist order against Linda D. Kirby, District Court Judge at Eighteenth Judicial District, on Wednesday, August 3, 2022. The case is styled as ‘In the Matter of Judge Linda Kirby’ with case number #2651.
The judge was charged with violating Rule 2.5 of the Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 601B, which states:
A judge shall perform judicial and administrative duties, competently and diligently..
The order reads:
“On April 6, 2022, Brooke R. Medlam Mantey filed a complaint stating that on September 20, 2021, the respondent entered a Memorandum of Judgment and Decree of Divorce in Medlam’s divorce matter. On October 2, 2021, Medlam filed a motion to reconsider, and the court heard the motion on November 9, 2021. Medlam filed a complaint alleging that the respondent had stil! not issued a ruling in the matter as of the date of the complaint.
On May 6, 2022, the Inquiry Panel for the Commission met at its general monthly meeting to discuss the complaint against the respondent and determine whether the complaint contained facts that cause a reasonable person to believe that a violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct had occurred.”
The order stated that:
The Commission determined that the respondent violated the above-cited rules by failing to perform judicial duties competently and diligently by failing to complete judicial duties and hear and decide matters that come before the court….
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Linda D. Kirby:
1. cease and desist failing to hear and decide matters assigned to the judge; and
2… agree that this Order will be made public.
The Judge’s Courtroom is at 525 N Main in Wichita and can be reached at 316-660-5801.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
