Casey Moreland to take leave from bench

Judge Casey Moreland

A Nashville judge facing allegations that an improper relationship influenced a case in his courtroom will be off the bench for a period of time, court officials said Friday.

Judge Casey Moreland, one of Nashville’s 11 General Sessions judges handling mostly misdemeanor cases, is on leave for medical reasons, according to General Sessions Court Administrator Warner Hassell.

"I know Judge Moreland may be out for a little bit for medical reasons," he said. "And how long that may be I don't know. But his docket will be covered by a qualified judge."

Hassell said the General Sessions judges, who each earn $170,000 annually, held a special meeting Friday and unanimously selected Judge Gale Robinson to replace Moreland as presiding judge. 

Robinson, who called the meeting, did not return a call Friday.

Moreland had served as presiding judge since last fall, and has been a judge since 1998. The presiding judge earns the same as other judges but takes on administrative duties such as setting schedules.

Earlier this week, Moreland's health was a concern. About 9 a.m. Thursday, a court staffer and a police officer went to his home to conduct a welfare check, police spokeswoman Kris Mumford said. She said the officer talked to the judge and left.

The allegations of misconduct against Moreland are documented in a Metro Nashville Police Department investigation of a woman’s suicide, and were the subject of several stories in the Nashville Scene and on WSMV Channel 4 news.

The Tennessean has been working for weeks to verify the allegations in the reports.

Nashville resident Leigh Terry, 34, committed suicide in May. Before she died, Terry told two friends she had sex with Moreland, according to a police report based on interviews with the friends. She told one friend she had sex with the judge to get out of a driving under the influence charge, the report said. The interviews documented in the police report are not done under oath.

Terry had at least one DUI and implied consent violation — meaning she refused to take a breath or blood test — case assigned to Moreland, but the trial in the case was handled by another Nashville judge, court records show.

The case happened in 2013, years before Terry, Moreland, lawyer Bryan Lewis and others went on a tumultuous trip to Alabama together.

In late April 2016, Lewis flew Terry and others in his private plane to the beach. Moreland met them there. On the trip and at dinner, Terry was picking fights with people, Lewis told police, so he booked her a hotel room and gave her money for a flight home. A week later, police reports say, the woman killed herself in her apartment with a gun Lewis had given her.

In interviews with police investigating Terry’s death, Lewis admitted he and Terry had been in a sexual relationship and he paid for the downtown apartment where the woman lived.

Moreland told the Nashville Scene he had met Terry a few times and recused himself from her DUI case. In comments to the Scene, the judge denied having a sexual relationship with Terry and said his stamp on case dispositions was merely an administrative measure.

But a judicial conduct expert consulted by The Tennessean for this story said the recusal raises questions.

“If he’s just saying he ran into the woman once or twice, I’m not sure why he recused himself,” said David Cook, a Memphis lawyer and former member of the state judicial oversight body now known as the Board of Judicial Conduct.

Terry was represented by Lewis in the DUI case. Cook said the judge’s relationship with Lewis, as well as Terry, could violate rules for judges in Tennessee.

Moreland did not respond to text messages, phone calls or an email seeking comment this week. Lewis said he could not comment for this story.

Lewis and the longtime General Sessions judge have a history, one that has led to controversy before.

Later this month, Lewis will go before the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility, which disciplines lawyers, for a hearing on a complaint that involves Moreland.

A complaint was filed because of a call Lewis made to Moreland, which led to a prominent developer getting out of jail early after his arrest on domestic violence charges. The developer, David Chase, was charged with assaulting his former girlfriend a second time, after he was released. Those charges were later dropped in a controversial deal made by District Attorney General Glenn Funk.

Lewis’ disciplinary hearing is set to begin Feb. 13, after which members of the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility will decide what if any penalties he should face.

Full Article & Source:
Casey Moreland to take leave from bench

Judge dismissed tickets, fines for female friend

WSMV Channel 4

NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Court documents indicate that Davidson County General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland appears to have helped a woman he knew avoid paying traffic fines and court fees.

Text messages provided by the woman, Natalie Amos, corroborate what the Channel 4 I-Team found in the court papers. The messages also indicate Moreland and Amos “sexted” each other and met privately at her apartment.

Court records show that Moreland arranged to have $1,200 in court fines wiped from Amos’ debt, without following the normal procedures.

Moreland declared Amos indigent, unable to pay, even though she was working and willing to work out payments.

"I just really thought I was going to get an extension, and it just went away," Amos told the I-Team.

Amos said she had met Moreland at a downtown restaurant. The introduction was made by her friend Leigh Terry – the same woman whose suicide in May 2016 was investigated by Metro police. Terry had been on a trip with Judge Moreland and attorney Bryan Lewis in the days before her death.

The court's computer shows Amos' fines were waived July 14, 2015. That same day, Amos received a text she said was from the judge.

"Your fees; fines and court cost are taken care of! You now officially owe me !! Haha,” the text read.

Amos said there was no quid-pro-quo and that no sexual favors were exchanged for taking care of the fines and court costs, but she said their relationship later became sexual.

"But you became lovers, eventually?" I-Team reporter Nancy Amons asked.

"Eventually we did, yes, about a year later,” Amos said.

Three months after the court fines disappeared, on Nov. 24, 2015, Amos texted Moreland about problems she was having getting her license back. She owed money to the Tennessee Department of Safety over traffic tickets.

Moreland texted her, "I may can help in Davidson County.” He then reminded her to send a picture, which she did.

The two exchanged suggestive comments; Moreland texting, "So you want me to give you a little attention?" He also mentioned a "mid-day quick and dirty tuck," a reference to an earlier conversation concerning her tucking him in.

The I-Team tracked what happened to two of Amos’ traffic tickets mentioned in the text conversation.

Documents at the Traffic Clerk's office show that on Nov. 4, 2016, Moreland wrote two letters, one for each ticket, directing the clerk to “pull the ticket” and place the citations on a traffic docket coming up in four days. He directed the clerk not to subpoena the officer. When the cases went to court, one ticket was retired, with no fines due; the second ticket shows that the fine was paid, which surprised Amos.

Amos texted the judge the following week following up about the tickets, telling Moreland, “Thanks so much for your help... much appreciated!”

Moreland texted back, "They are gone !! Hahaha."

Amos texted back, "I know that crazy!"

Moreland’s text then proposed they meet the next day at her apartment.

“What you doing tomorrow between 3:30 and 5:30???" Amos texted.

"Just be horny and naked !!", Moreland’s text said.

The next texts are sexually explicit.

On Nov. 16, the next day, Moreland texted that he was on the way to her apartment and asks for specific instructions about how to get in.

"Want me to come around the back !" Moreland’s text said.

The I-Team has been asking Judge Moreland for an interview concerning his texts with Amos. So far, he has declined.

Click the links to read parts one and two of this investigation.

Full Article & Source:
Judge dismissed tickets, fines for female friend

Metro General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland resigns as presiding judge

WSMV Channel 4

NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Metro General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland has resigned his position as presiding judge.

Moreland will remain a judge, but is stepping aside from other administrative functions, such as setting dockets and budgets for the general sessions judges.

Friday morning, Judge Gale Robinson was elected to fill the position of presiding judge for the remainder of Moreland’s one-year term. Robinson said Moreland resigned as presiding judge for medical reasons.

The announcement comes after three days of Channel 4 I-Team stories about Moreland, including allegations that surfaced during a police investigation into a woman’s suicide in 2016. The woman had recently returned from a trip that included Moreland and attorney Bryan Lewis.

Metro police interviewed several witnesses who said the woman who committed suicide had threatened to expose what she said she knew about Moreland and Lewis.

Moreland and Lewis have declined to comment.

The I-Team also discovered that Moreland appears to have acted on behalf of another woman on the trip to dismiss her tickets and fines. The woman shared text messages she says came from Moreland that are graphic.

The newest developments air tonight on Channel 4 News at 6:00 as the I-Team's investigation continues.

Full Article & Source:
Metro General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland resigns as presiding judge

Ethics Complaint Levels Charges Against Two Judges, Lewis

DA Glenn Funk also named in filing to Board of Professional Review and Board of Judicial Conduct

Lewis & Moreland vacationing in Costa Rica in 2013

Following a Scene story on Tuesday, a complaint was filed today with both the Board of Professional Responsibility and the Board of Judicial Conduct against attorney Bryan Lewis and Judge Casey Moreland alleging “violations of the rules governing attorneys and judges.” These boards regulate the conduct of attorneys and judges, respectively.

The filing was made anonymously “due to concerns regarding retaliation.” A copy of the complaint was simultaneously sent to both the Scene and WSMV-Channel 4 from an anonymous email account. Attempts to reach the person who filed the complaint were unsuccessful.

The Scene story, which detailed the suicide of Leigh Terry following a trip to Alabama with Moreland, Lewis and others, included allegations, contained in a Metro police report, that Moreland had sex with Terry, who is a client of Lewis', in exchange for the dismissal of her DUI charges. When asked if he had ever had sex with Terry, Moreland told the Scene, “I fully reject and deny any personal relationship with Leigh Terry whatsoever.”

Lewis would later describe his relationship with Terry as a “friend with benefits,” and he paid for an apartment for her.

Additionally, the complaint filed with the two boards alleges misconduct about Judge Michael Binkley, a circuit court judge in Williamson County, and Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk. According to the complaint, Binkley was arrested “during a prostitution sting on Dickerson Road in 2010.” According to the complaint, the charges against Binkley “were dismissed and expunged by Judge Casey Moreland on the very same day in a highly unusual manner, both in timing and procedure. Since that time, Attorney Lewis has boasted to a number of individuals that Judge Binkley ‘owes’ Attorney Lewis and Judge Moreland for ‘fixing’ the prostitution charges against Judge Binkley.” The Scene could not independently verify the truth of the allegations contained in the complaint filed with the two boards.

The Scene left messages with Binkley’s office requesting a response. WSMV reached Binkley, who responded with “no comment.” Funk's office declined to comment on the complaint.

Lewis is already scheduled for a three-day hearing before the Board of Professional Responsibility, beginning Feb. 13, on charges that he improperly sought and received Moreland's assistance in gaining the early release of developer David Chase from a mandatory 12-hour hold. Chase had been arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. The original complaint against Lewis, which led to this hearing, charges that he attempted to influence a judge by improper means, had an ex parte contact with the judge, and assisted the judge in the violation of the code of judicial conduct. That complaint also notes that Moreland was publicly reprimanded for his actions in releasing Chase before the mandatory 12-hour hold.

Ironically, Chase is suing ex-girlfriend Lauren Bull and others for defamation in a case which is pending in Binkley’s Williamson County courtroom.

Full Article & Source:
Ethics Complaint Levels Charges Against Two Judges, Lewis

See Also:
Questions Surround Trip Taken by Judge, Lawyers, Women 

Judge, attorney face questions about woman's suicide

Tennessee State Senator Wants Judicial Discipline Panel to Investigate Nashville Judges

Questions Surround Trip Taken by Judge, Lawyers, Women

In wake of Leigh Terry’s death, Judge Casey Moreland defends conduct in and out of court 

by Steve Cavendish & Walter Roche

By the time Metro police showed up at The Stahlman building on May 25, 2016, one of the building custodians had already been in Unit 907 to check out the smell. A complaint from a next-door neighbor about a strong odor led him inside.

What he found was the body of Leigh Terry, 34, dead from a gunshot wound to her right temple. Police would later conclude that she died May 5, based on when she was last seen as well as her cellphone records. They also reasoned, based on her internet search history, which included details about the death of Marilyn Monroe, that Terry had committed suicide.

Leigh Terry

The weekend before, Terry and two other women had been the guests of some well-known (and married) members of the Nashville legal community at a condo on Dauphin Island, Ala.: Bryan Lewis, his law partner Larry Hayes and Judge Casey Moreland. Terry, though, was sent home early from the trip after arguing with Lewis. She returned to Nashville — to an apartment leased for her by Lewis, who police files say was listed as her boyfriend and emergency contact on The Stahlman’s paperwork — and would eventually be found dead on her bed. A gun, which Lewis lent to Terry for her protection, was in her right hand.

The death, the trip and threats Terry had made about exposing the relationship between the judge and Lewis are spelled out in great detail in an investigative report into the woman's death by the Metro police department.

The trip to the Gulf Coast did not get off to a good start. Terry, the daughter of prominent Nashville surgeon Richard Terry, at first refused to go, but changed her mind following a conversation with Moreland’s friend Natalie Amos. Terry, according to the police reports, had gotten into an argument with Lewis over a withdrawal she had made from his bank account.

Lewis told police, "Leigh acted crazy and cursed people on the trip."

According to the reports, Terry argued with Lewis on the flight down, and by the time they reached Alabama, he had decided she was going home. At dinner, according to Amos’ police interview, Terry said that “she would ruin [Lewis],” something she reiterated later in texts to him, when she claimed she would “expose their relationship, Natalie’s and Casey’s.”

Judge Casey Moreland

Moreland tells the Scene that he had met Terry only a few times. Moreland was not on the plane — he and Hayes drove separately and joined up with Lewis and the two women when the plane landed. (He would later return to Nashville on Lewis' private plane.)

Lewis and Amos — the latter a former DUI defendant who appeared in Moreland’s court in 2014 — took Terry to the Homewood Suites hotel in Mobile. Lewis paid for her room and threw several $100 bills to her, and he and Amos left, according to the report, which included a written account from the hotel clerk on duty when Terry was checked in.

Lewis would later tell police he did not believe Terry's threats were serious. He also described Terry in one interview with police as “a friend with benefits.”

Terry contacted a friend in Nashville, Brian Pesterfield, who flew down in his private plane, picked her up and brought her back to Nashville. Pesterfield told police that Terry said she “got out of a DUI by sleeping with Judge Casey Moreland.” The Scene could not independently verify whether the charge was true.

When asked if he had ever had sex with Terry, Moreland says, “I fully reject and deny any personal relationship with Leigh Terry whatsoever.”

There is some disagreement over the origin of the trip. Moreland tells the Scene that he thought it was supposed to be a fishing trip with Lewis and other guys and didn’t realize the women would be coming. Amos told police in an interview that she and Moreland “originally started the discussion about having the Alabama trip” and that she didn’t realize “other people were going to come on the trip.”

Moreland denies he and Amos were there together.

“It wasn’t a weekend for me and her. That might have been her plan or Leigh Terry’s plan,” Moreland tells the Scene. “I never had an inappropriate relationship with Natalie Amos.”

Attempts to reach Lewis and Amos were unsuccessful.

When asked about Terry’s and Amos’ appearances in his court, Moreland is adamant that he recused himself from their cases.

“Because I had even a minimal acquaintance with both Ms. Terry and Ms. Amos, when their cases were assigned to my court — as a result of a process that is entirely random — I took the proper step of recusal to ensure the matters were handled in other General Sessions Courts,” Moreland says to the Scene in a separate statement. “At no time did I intervene on their behalf during or after judgments were rendered by the appropriate courts. There are questions from the media about my stamp and signature on case dispositions following successful completion of ordered probation — in both cases my sign off [is] administrative in nature.”

On Terry’s DUI charges, the General Sessions Court disposition form is signed by Judge John Aaron Holt and marked with a stamp from Moreland. But on at least two of Amos’ disposition forms from May 14, 2014, the signature line carries Judge Moreland’s trademark capital “C” signoff.

This was not the first trip that Moreland and Lewis had taken — the pair went to Costa Rica together in 2013, according to images on Moreland’s Facebook page. But it’s their relationship in and out of the courtroom that has drawn scrutiny.

Lewis is scheduled for a three-day hearing beginning Feb. 13 before the state Board of Professional Responsibility on charges that he improperly sought and got Moreland's assistance in gaining the early release of developer David Chase from a mandatory 12-hour hold. Chase had been arrested on suspicion of domestic violence.

The official complaint charges that Lewis attempted to influence a judge by improper means, had an ex parte contact with the judge and assisted the judge in the violation of the code of judicial conduct. The complaint notes that Moreland was publicly reprimanded for his actions in releasing Chase before the mandatory 12-hour hold.

The Metro Nashville Police Department would not confirm or deny whether they had forwarded Terry’s allegation to the TBI, FBI or the Board of Judicial Conduct. In similar cases, MNPD spokesman Don Aaron says, the department has shared information from investigations with other agencies. He also says the department never directly asked Moreland if he had sex with Terry.

“The primary investigation for the police department was the death of Leigh Terry,” Aaron says.

“There are other issues, obviously, that are documented in the file, that the Nashville police department has not investigated.”

Terry's decomposing body was brought from her apartment on May 25 to the state medical examiner's office, which would eventually concur in the suicide finding. In September, MNPD received a bloodstain analysis from the crime lab, which concluded that the evidence did not suggest “anyone else was present in close proximity of the victim when the shot was fired.”

Metro police officially ruled the death a suicide and closed the case on Oct. 31.

Full Article & Source:
Questions Surround Trip Taken by Judge, Lawyers, Women