LASC issues order immediately disqualifying Judge Eboni Johnson Rose on an interim basis

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IT IS ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that respondent, Judge Eboni Johnson Rose, 19th Judicial District Court, State of Louisiana, be and hereby is immediately disqualified from exercising any judicial function during the pendency of further proceedings in this matter based on a finding of probable cause that respondent committed a violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct and poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the public and the administration of justice.

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The Louisiana Supreme Court has removed Baton Rouge judge Eboni Johnson Rose from the bench, saying she "presents a substantial threat of serious harm to the public."

The court's order immediately removes her from the 19th Judicial District bench pending the outcome of a judicial investigation.

The Supreme Court said the disqualification results from a recommendation from the Judiciary Commission of Louisiana, which is investigating allegations of misconduct by Johnson Rose.

Johnson Rose currently handles criminal and civil cases for 19th Judicial District after winning the seat in a December 2020 election. She is running for a seat on the First Circuit Court of Appeals against Kelly Balfour, a fellow 19th Judicial District judge.

Johnson Rose was on the bench handling a full slate of cases Tuesday morning, just hours before the dismissal order was published. Officials from the 19th JDC and Supreme Court did not immediately respond to questions about the process to appoint an ad hoc judge that will preside over Johnson Rose's docket following her abrupt departure.

Interim disqualifications for judges are rare, usually reserved for serious allegations of misconduct like sexual harassment or tax evasion. But it's a drastic measure the state's top court has familiarity with.

At least four other district and city court judges in south Louisiana have been temporarily disqualified from their seats since 2018. In several cases, the judges resigned before the Supreme Court imposed final discipline on them.

Verdicts under scrutiny

The court's two-page order does not list specific reasons for the disqualification. But Johnson Rose has been under scrutiny after several of her rulings and verdicts in her courtroom were called into question.

In March, the judge convicted a former Baton Rouge police officer, accused of sexual misconduct against a Southern University student, of "misdemeanor grade" malfeasance in office. When attorneys pointed out there is no such offense in Louisiana law, she acquitted Steele, drawing intense objections from prosecutors.

In April, the state Supreme Court overturned the conviction of a Baton Rouge teacher accused of bashing a car on a flooded street with a baseball bat and threatening its occupants with a gun. Johnson Rose originally read out a verdict of "not guilty," but then returned everyone to the courtroom and issued a guilty verdict, saying the jury had misunderstood the instructions.

In overturning the verdict, the Supreme Court ruled that Johnson Rose had improperly met with jurors alone after the trial. In a concurrence, one of the justices went so far as to question Johnson Rose's "professional competency."

Then, in May, Johnson Rose had to vacate the guilty plea of Texas lawyer who admitted to setting his ex-girlfriend's Baton Rouge home on fire because she suspended too much of his prison time.

That defendant, 32-year-old Christian Lee King, pleaded guilty again Monday to lesser charges in the case and Johnson Rose sentenced him to spend five years in prison. She also ordered him to serve three years of probation after he’s released, court records show.

Dissent among the justices

The Supreme Court's order was a 5-2 decision, with justices Jeff Hughes and Piper Griffin dissenting.

In his dissent, Hughes said Johnson Rose had apologized, and it would have been better to "consider her attempt to improve her judicial performance through a period of probation under the guidance of an experienced and respected mentor."

"The balance between an appropriate sanction for behavior that deserves a sanction and respect for the choice of the electorate is a difficult one," Hughes wrote.

Griffin argued that suspending a judge before a Judiciary Commission ruling is "a harsh remedy that must be exercised sparingly as it runs counter to the decision of voters."

"The actions of the judge in this matter are cause for concern and may ultimately lead to discipline," Griffin wrote. "However, in my view, they are not so egregious as to warrant the most extreme measures at this point in the Judiciary Commission process."

Justice Jay McCallum however, said in a concurring opinion that a harsher punishment was warranted: suspending Johnson Rose without pay and making her pay for a temporary judge to serve while she is out.

"However, because our constitution and Supreme Court rules do not allow us to do otherwise, the taxpayers of this state are forced to bear the double burden of paying Respondent’s salary during her suspension and the cost of a pro tempore judge to serve in her stead," McCallum wrote

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