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Saturday, Jun. 13, 2009

Middle Georgia judge accused of misconduct

The state’s Commission on Judicial Qualifications is beginning formal proceedings against a Twiggs County probate judge they believe is abusing his power and suppressing the rights of defendants.

Judge Kenneth E. Fowler said he received a copy Friday morning of 16 counts of violations against the Code of Judicial Conduct involving allegations of misconduct.

Fowler declined to comment about the charges against him.

The commission is responsible for investigating complaints of judicial misconduct and/or judicial incapacity and for disciplining judges in Georgia. It’s composed of two lay people, two judges and three attorneys who, after investigation and hearings, may recommend to the Supreme Court the removal, discipline or retirement of a particular judge.

Cheryl Custer, executive director of the commission, said Fowler has 30 days to respond to the charges. If Fowler decides to fight the charges, a hearing would be convened at the earliest convenient date, she said.

It’s not the first time the commission has investigated a Twiggs County judge. Former Twiggs County Probate Judge David Crenshaw was removed from office in June 2001 after he pleaded guilty to charges of theft by taking and violating his oath of office, which stemmed from a mortgage business he ran from his probate court office.

The commission began investigating Fowler in October 2008.

Among the charges filed against Fowler are:

Ÿ Stating to criminal defendants that they carried the burden of proof to prove their innocence on charges filed against them.

Ÿ Finding defendants guilty without allowing them to hear sworn testimony of the charging officer or other witnesses.

Ÿ Attempting to dissuade defendants from exercising their right to request transfer of their cases to Superior Court.

Ÿ Expressing prejudgment or bias in criminal matters Fowler heard.

Ÿ Failing to apply proper legal standard for a finding of guilt in criminal matters.

Ÿ Giving false or misleading information to criminal defendants while explaining the conditions of probated sentence.

Ÿ Improperly questioning and interrogating defendants in violation of the defendant’s rights.

Ÿ Allowing criminals to “buy out” the community service portion of their criminal sentence. The “fees” were then deposited into a local bank account, in which Fowler maintains exclusive control over the holding and disbursement of funds. He failed to turn over the fees to the Twiggs County government.

Additionally, Fowler allegedly provided a false official writing to the county when questioned about the account, as well as issued improper court orders which directed the payment of monies from the account to various expenditures that Fowler decided and approved. The majority of these monies went into various law enforcement equipment.

Ÿ Ordering “costs” to be paid by defendants in amounts higher than allowed by law.

Ÿ Failing to be dignified, patient and courteous to individuals appearing in Probate Court. Fowler is accused of using rude, abusive and insulting language to both defendants and witnesses. Examples include yelling at a defendant to “shut up” and insinuating that a female defendant provided sexual favors to a Georgia State trooper. He also referred to African-Americans as “colored.”

Ÿ Using the prestige of being a judge to improperly influence a litigant in a case not in Fowler’s court. Fowler allegedly called a tenant on behalf of a Twiggs County property owner and identified himself as a Probate Judge. He then ordered the tenant to vacate a rental property, according to the charges. According to the charges, this led to an assault on the tenant. At a hearing in Magistrate Court, Fowler allegedly made a false statement to the Magistrate Judge of Twiggs County, denying involvement with either of the parties.

Ÿ Issuing orders that attempted to prohibit the Twiggs County sheriff or other lawful custodians of inmates from awarding “good time” in accordance with state law.

Ÿ Illegally sentencing a defendant charged with contempt of court to more than 20 days in custody.

Ÿ Allowing unqualified persons to serve as interpreters in his court. According to the charges, Fowler allowed an individual to act as an interpreter, even though he acknowledged to the court he couldn’t speak Spanish. In addition, the individual was acquainted with the defendant.

Twiggs County Commission Chairman Ray Bennett said he saw the charges being delivered this morning and was aware of the accusations against Fowler, but couldn’t comment on specific charges because neither he nor the county attorney had the opportunity to read through the document Friday.

“We’re aware of the situation,” Bennett said. “We’re very interested in the community being served as it should be. ... It’s just unfortunate. We’re concerned and interested that the community be presented in the best light.”

Bennett said that the county commission hasn’t received any formal complaints about Fowler.

Whether the charges against Fowler might affect any rulings he made as a judge is unknown. Attempts to reach Craig Frasier, the district attorney for that circuit, were unsuccessful Friday.

Information from The Telegraph’s archives were used in this report. To contact writer Phillip Ramati, call 744-4334.