Legal News

Congress Appalled by Antics of Judge Kent

By Ashby Jones

Embattled federal judge Samuel Kent earlier this week agreed to step down from the federal bench — in 2010. Cynics charged that the move seemed designed to palliate Congress enough to keep impeachment at bay, so that Kent could keep his $174,000 salary for another year.

Well, the plan may be backfiring. On Wednesday, as the Houston Chron reports, Congress started fast-track impeachment proceedings against Kent, “galvanized by his bid to keep a $174,000 annual paycheck in prison and his predatory behavior toward his female employees.”

According to the Chron, the testimony given on Wednesday wasn’t pretty. Cathy McBroom and Donna Wilkerson, two former employees of Kent, testified that, according to the Chron, they for years “stayed silent as an often intoxicated U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent cornered them to inflict unwanted kissing, groping and occasionally furtive sexual touching.”

Members of the House Judiciary Committee sat “glued” to the testimony. Then they reacted: "A judicial reign of terror," said Rep. Dan Lungren, (R-CA).

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), personally apologized to the women on behalf of the federal government. "I am compelled to apologize for the treatment that you received,” said Jackson Lee. "Hopefully you will accept (the apology) knowing that your federal government and the judiciary overall is one that you can be proud of."

Neither Kent nor his lawyer, Dick DeGuerin, took part in the proceedings. Kent's written statement blamed his behavior on alcoholism, an unspecified personality flaw and the sense of loss he suffered during and after the death of his first wife from brain cancer.

In any event, some members took umbrage at Kent’s 2010 maneuver. Two vowed to develop and approve at least one article of impeachment within a matter of weeks to set the stage for Kent's removal from office before the August congressional recess.

"This is insulting," declared Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX). "The message needs to go out that you don't play games with this Congress - otherwise we're taking it to the wall."

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on June 05, 2009 (boomark / email).