Ethics charges filed against Desert Ridge Justice of the Peace Clancy Jayne

A Phoenix-area justice of the peace faces nearly two-dozen charges of ethical misconduct, including accusations he used court resources to boost his political campaign, failed to report campaign donations and solicited corporate sponsorships for "Breakfast with the Judge" events, according to the Arizona Commission on Judicial Conduct.

Clancy Jayne, head judge of the Desert Ridge Justice Court since 2008, has received warnings or reprimands by the commission at least eight times during his eight-year tenure, not including the new allegations. The Desert Ridge court precinct covers parts of north Phoenix, north Scottsdale, Cave Creek and Carefree.

Jayne is set to leave office in January after losing the Republican primary race in August to Cathy Riggs, who was endorsed by Gov. Doug Ducey. Riggs is unopposed in the Nov. 8 general election.

Jayne drew attention just before the Aug. 30 primary after blasting Ducey in the Yellow Sheet Report, a political tip sheet published by Arizona News Service. Jayne said he was "beyond pissed" by the endorsement and described Ducey as a "son of a bitch" who did "gofer" work decades ago when Jayne was head of Gilbert Days.

The public comments are part of the 74-page statement of charges filed by the commission's disciplinary counsel, April Elliott, against Jayne in October as they "cast doubt on his temperament and fitness to serve as judge."

Although Jayne only has two months left as justice of the peace, Elliott recommends the Arizona Supreme Court censure, suspend or remove Jayne from office and assess attorney's fees against him for "conduct ... that brings the judicial office into disrepute."

Jayne, in a formal response filed by Mesa-based attorney David Brooks, denies the accusations of misconduct and argues there is no basis for discipline. Brooks did not respond to a request for comment.

Party at Turf Paradise

 

The state's disciplinary counsel questioned Jayne's use of other judges' email addresses, which it argues are not public, to invite officials from around the state to his "65th birthday party" at Turf Paradise horse track, where Jayne charged $50 per person and held an auction to benefit his re-election campaign.

More than 100 people attended, and the auction featured more than 50 items, including "artistic golf putters," and "raised more than $5,000 to kick off" his campaign fundraising, according to an update on Jayne's website cited by Elliott's report. Campaign-finance reports for that period, however, list $1,567 in donations at the event and no in-kind contributions, according to Elliott.

Jayne, in his response, argues that the judges' email addresses are public information and says that judges often use court email addresses to communicate with third-parties about non-judicial matters. Jayne contends the email invitation, sent from his campaign, was an effort to abide by the Arizona Supreme Court's advice to be "proactive in communicating with the general public, elected officials and other government entities."  (Click to Continue)

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Ethics charges filed against Desert Ridge Justice of the Peace Clancy Jayne

New Orleans City Councilman accused of ethical misconduct; Discipline board recommends two-year suspension

James Gray, New Orleans City Councilman, District E

NEW ORLEANS – The  Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board is recommending that New Orleans City Councilman James Gray’s law license be suspended for two years.

The board made its recommendation to suspend Gray to the Louisiana Supreme Court on Oct. 7 after finding that he had engaged in ethical misconduct.

Gray,  a past president of the Louisiana Law Institute and a former LSU law professor, took office on the New Orleans City Council in 2013 after winning a runoff election for the District E seat in December 2012 against Louisiana State Rep. Austin Badon. By winning the election Gray was selected to replace former New Orleans City Councilman Jon Johnson who resigned after pleading guilty to corruption charges and being sentenced to six months in prison.

The charges that resulted in the recommendation of a suspension were first filed with the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board in August 2012 after an investigation by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) who found Gray continuously violated ethical standards by not providing proper representation to his clients on numerous occasions.

The first incident was in Gray’s 2004 representation of Gloria A. Frith in a medical malpractice claim. In that case, Gray admitted to the ODC that while he had spoken to Frith numerous times about the matter he did not take any action on her behalf. When Frith obtained a new attorney to represent her, Gray purportedly failed to provide her files on the case despite numerous requests that ultimately led to Firth filing a complaint with the ODC in March 2010.

The second incident goes back to 2003 when Gray was retained to represent Barbara Ann Roberts on a wrongful death claim. In 2008, Roberts said she met with Gray who ensured her he was still working on her case, but she later found out after the case was dismissed due to abandonment on May 5, 2010 that the last work Gray had done on it had been in 2007. Roberts filed a complaint with the ODC in 2010.

The third incident deals with an advanced payment of $18,750 for representation Gray allegedly received on Feb. 9, 2010 from Frederick Reed to represent him in in a criminal matter. After first filing a pro se motion on Feb. 5, 2010 to withdraw a guilty plea, Reed said he was visited by Gray at the Union Parish Detention Center. Reed stated that Gray assured him he would be representing him in the case going forward. After Reed was transferred to another prison in July 2010 he discovered that Gray had never enrolled as his counsel of record and was unable to provide an update on the withdrawn guilty plea. At this time Reed and Gray agreed to discontinue their professional relationship, however, Gray allegedly only returned $14,000 of the $18,750 he received to represent Reed in the case. As a result Reed filed a complaint with the ODC in 2011.

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New Orleans City Councilman accused of ethical misconduct; Discipline board recommends two-year suspension