The Supreme Court today denied review in Johnson v. Commission on Judicial Performance, declining to overturn the order of the Commission on Judicial Performance that removed Jeffrey Johnson from his position as a justice of the Second District, Division One, Court of Appeal, and disqualified him from acting as a judge in the future.
Last June, the Commission members concluded that, “by engaging in sexual misconduct, Justice Johnson severely undermined public esteem for the integrity of the judiciary” and that, “given his lack of candor during [the Commission] proceeding, we do not have confidence that he has the fundamental qualities of honesty and integrity required of a judge.”
In his petition to the Supreme Court, Johnson argued that “key factual findings were unsupported by clear and convincing evidence” and that “the commission’s unprecedented decision to remove [him] is disproportionate to any prior decision, more severe than is consistent with the commission’s obligation to protect the public, and threatens to damage the court’s institutional credibility with the public.”
Johnson’s name was mentioned as a possible Supreme Court appointee in 2014. (Here and here.)
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Court of Appeal justice asks Supreme Court to put him back on the bench
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