San Joaquin County judge censured for DUI crash, allegedly misleading officers

by Aaron Leathley

A San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge was publicly censured by California's Commission on Judicial Performance in October 2022 for his involvement in a car crash while under the influence.  Clifford Oto/The Record

A San Joaquin County judge was censured by a California judicial misconduct commission for causing a car crash while intoxicated and misleading police officers and bystanders about the incident, the commission announced Thursday.

"Judge (Michael J.) Mulvihill’s conduct reflects poorly on his integrity, (and) negatively impacts the public’s perception of him, and of the judiciary in general," the Commission on Judicial Performance said in a statement.

Mulvihill, who has served as a San Joaquin County judge since 2015, agreed to public censure to end a preliminary investigation into his DUI crash and subsequent comments to police on New Year's Day, 2022, the commission's decision stated. 

Commissioners stopped short of removing Mulvihill from the bench, saying, "The misconduct here does not rise to the level of wrongdoing in which the Supreme Court has imposed the ultimate sanction." Mulvihill's attorney, Paul S. Meyer, declined to comment on Thursday.

Judge Michael Mulvihill, right, after being sworn in in 2015.  Mulvihill faced public censure by a judicial misconduct commission in October following a DUI crash and what the commission described as misleading statements to police officers.  Clifford Oto/The Record

At about 6 p.m. Jan. 1 while driving, Mulvihill's car crashed into barriers on both sides of the road on Pacific Avenue near the Calaveras River in Stockton, according to the commission's description of the incident. No one was injured, a Stockton police spokesman said.

Before police arrived, Mulvihill tried to drive away, lying to bystanders attempting to keep him at the scene by saying the incident would be "extra bad" for him because he was a truck driver, according to the commission.

Mulvihill then walked away from the crash and was chased by a bystander, who convinced him to stay, the commission stated.

When a Stockton police officer arrived, Mulvihill told the officer he had been texting and driving, but did not disclose that he had been drinking, the commission stated.

When asked directly if he had been drinking, Mulvihill told the officer, "I had two beers." He later told an officer at the police station that he had had three pints of beer, according to the description of the incident.

After administering a sobriety test, police arrested Mulvihill for allegedly driving under the influence and texting while driving. A blood test taken about three hours after the crash showed his blood-alcohol content was 0.25 percent, more than three times the legal limit, the commission stated. The judge reported his arrest to the misconduct commission on January 4.

In June, Mulvihill pleaded no contest to DUI charges. He was sentenced three years of informal probation, a DUI class and 10 days in jail, the commission stated.

Since his arrest, Mulvihill has attended Alcoholics Anonymous daily and enrolled in a continuous alcohol monitoring program, the commission stated. In letters to the commission, Mulvihill's colleagues spoke about his "strong work ethic and fair administration of justice."

"The commission recognizes that all of the acts of misconduct ... arose out of one drunken lapse of judgment to get behind the wheel of a car," the decision stated. "However, that lapse is no more excusable here than when anyone else makes a similar mistake while under the influence."

The commission has the authority censure judges confidentially, publicly or remove them from the bench, Emma Bradford, the body's legal advisor, said. 

"Judge Mulvihill has taken significant steps to ensure that this behavior will never occur again," Presiding Judge Michael Coughlan of the San Joaquin County Superior Court said in a statement. "Through his actions following the incident, he has demonstrated a sincere commitment in that regard."

Full Article & Source:
San Joaquin County judge censured for DUI crash, allegedly misleading officers