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Litigation

: The Gavel

House Impeaches Federal Judge for Just 14th Time in History

By Jason Barrett

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Judge Kent

CNN reports that the U.S. House of Representatives has voted to impeach Fifth Circuit Judge Samuel Kent.

Kent has been the target of an unusually fast impeachment process since his obstruction of justice conviction last May in a case involving allegations of sexual assault from two of Kent’s female staffers. In a plea deal, Kent agreed to plea guilty to obstruction of justice in exchange for dropping the sexual assault charges and was sentenced to 33 months in prison.

When Kent, in a letter to President Obama, announced his intention to wait a full year before resigning so that he could continue to receive salary and health benefits, the House Judiciary Committee acted quickly. Just days after Kent made his intentions known, the Committee had formed a special impeachment task force, held hearings, and voted to recommend full impeachment proceedings to the full House. None of the impeachment votes saw any nay votes, with a total of four impeachment articles being levied against Kent.

The proceedings will now move to the U.S. Senate. If convicted, Kent, who is scheduled to begin serving his jail sentence on Monday, will lose his salary and benefits immediately.

Full post as published by The Gavel on June 19, 2009 (boomark / email).