Judicial Agency Leader Cleared

A special examiner has cleared the director of California’s judicial watchdog agency of any wrongdoing during the agency’s disciplinary investigation of a Sonoma County judge.

However, the examiner, retired federal judge Charles A. Legge, said in a 23-page report to the Commission on Judicial Performance that director Victoria Henley’s work on the case “does present the appearance of impropriety.”

Henley had been accused of failing to disclose that her husband had pending litigation against Superior Court Judge Patricia Gray while the agency’s investigation was underway.

The commission released Legge’s report Monday and announced that it has asked the attorney general’s office to take over the disciplinary investigation of Gray.

The claims against Henley were lodged in October by Los Angeles lawyer Mark Geragos, who is defending Gray against the commission’s allegations that she unfairly accused a 1995 election opponent of condoning the actions of child molesters, robbers and those who kill police. The opponent was a deputy public defender who represented indigent criminal defendants.

Geragos has demanded that the Gray case be dropped. On Monday, he denounced Legge’s report.

“For an organization charged with making sure judges uphold ethical standards, this is an abomination,” Geragos said. Henley said she accepted Legge’s findings. “I’m gratified the independent examiner found no conflict of interest, no misconduct on my part and that my actions did not prejudice the commission or its investigation in any respect, and that neither my husband nor I obtained or attempted to obtain personal advantage.”