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Legal Ethics

A Judge Should Really And Truly Know Better

By Kathryn Rubino

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/ Dec 10, 2015 at 3:14 PM

Not an okay look for the office.

The Commission on Judicial Tenure and Discipline in Rhode Island is not happy with District Court Judge Rafael A. Ovalles. They just finished an investigation into the judge’s behavior, and they found his behavior violated the standard of judicial ethics. That’s no bueno.
So what did Judge Ovalles allegedly do? The full report is a treasure trove of weird and disturbing behavior — listen, when you read the allegation that the good judge asked a pregnant attorney before him if she’d eaten too much over the holidays or was pregnant and it doesn’t crack the top 10 terrible things he is accused of, you know you’re in for a doozy.
The Providence Journal reports that Ovalles has some… control issues, and he tends to take them out on women:

The commission documents Ovalles abusing a female public defender by berating her in open court, interfering with her job by creating rules exclusive to her, and confining her to her seat. It found that he publicly mistreated a deputy court clerk, including throwing a file at her in court.

Of course he also reportedly falls asleep in court, and is allegedly dishonest and tried to interfere with the Commission’s investigation — so we are dealing with a real winner. Allegedly.
And I’ve been saving the best — or at least the most disgusting — for last:

The allegations include that the clerk delivered a file to the judge’s chambers on two occasions only to find Ovalles sitting in his chair with his pants unbuttoned, his zipper down and his hand inside his underwear.
The commission’s report details an incident in which Ovalles let a female attorney get in front of him in line for a wake and then commented that he was enjoying the view from behind. Ovalles, it says, inappropriately asked the clerk if his shoes made him look sexy and told her she could come in and watch him “suck his lollipop.” She once knocked on his door and found him getting dressed. Another female clerk reported finding Ovalles sitting behind his desk with his pants hanging up behind him in clear view. Sheriffs and male clerks were often recruited to accompany female clerks into his chambers.

Judge Ovalles has 20 days to respond to the report, and a public hearing will follow. If even half this stuff is accurate, I see some disciplinary action in his future.
Commission: District Court Judge Ovalles sexually harassed female staff, lawyers [Providence Journal]

Topics

Judge Rafael A. Ovalles, Legal Ethics, Sexual Harassment, State Judges