Hearing opens for appellate justice facing allegations of sexual misconduct

LOS ANGELES -- On Monday, the Commission on Judicial Performance will launch what promises to be one of the most sprawling and divisive judge discipline hearings in recent memory. Justice Jeffrey Johnson of the 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles stands accused of assaulting, harassing or demeaning 17 women over nearly 20 years.

Johnson is also accused of bringing women to his court chambers after hours and of being drunk in the courthouse after hours.

The hearing is projected to last 19 days and CJP examiners have said they will call 76 witnesses to testify, including more than a dozen judicial officers including Johnson himself. The hearing could result in Johnson's removal from the bench.

Johnson has denied most of the allegations and said others were taken out of context.

"As stated in our filings, this is a whisper campaign to malign Justice Johnson's distinguished career on the bench and his admirable work in the community. Despite this, Justice Johnson remains respectful and committed to the process and looks forward to a careful review of the facts by those who will decide this matter," Paul S. Meyer, co-counsel for Johnson, said in a statement last week.

The specter of a powerful judge preying on less powerful women, including clerks and his own bodyguards, could present one of the more searing dramas of the #metoo era. Johnson, a graduate of Yale Law School who served as a federal prosecutor and U.S. magistrate judge, was just a few years ago believed to be on a short list to be elevated to the California Supreme Court.

Whatever happens to Johnson before the commission, the saga likely will stretch on for months or years.

In a separate action, Johnson is seeking $10 million in a lawsuit against his own court and fellow justice, Elwood Lui, who sent the details of his investigation into misconduct allegations against Johnson to a court-wide email list a year ago in his role as Administrative Presiding Justice of the court.

The email laid bare the contents of confidential sexual misconduct allegations against Johnson, which he alleges violates his right to privacy. Johnson v. Lui, 19STCV22913 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed July 1, 2019).

One of Johnson's accusers is also suing the court over the email.

Lui has said sending the email was an error caused by hitting the wrong button.

According to its 2018 annual report, the commission considered 1,246 complaints last year. It ordered 52 staff inquiries and 80 preliminary investigations. Just two matters continued to formal proceedings, the February hearing of Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge John Laettner, and now, Johnson's. The commission has yet to mete out punishment to Laettner, who in June had several of the allegations against him upheld by a commission-appointed panel.

Gary W. Schons of Best Best & Krieger LLP served as trial counsel for the Commission on Judicial Performance in eight matters between 2010 and 2016 that involved sitting jurists facing punishment for their alleged actions. Most, Schons said, were settled before a hearing could take place and none involved explicitly sexual allegations such as those leveled against Johnson.

Sexual misconduct cases that made their way to a hearing were nearly unheard of, he said.

"They are exceedingly rare," Schons said. "The other aspect that is exceedingly rare is that he is an appellate justice."

Justice Conrad Rushing of the 6th District Court of Appeal resigned in December 2017 amid accusations of sexual misconduct.

Schons said the only other commission hearing he was aware of that involved a bench officer other than a trial judge was the matter of Marshall F. McComb who sat on the California Supreme Court from 1956 to 1957 and was forced from the bench when he would not resign as a result of senile dementia.

The leveling of formal charges in itself, Schons said, was meaningful.

"They've already done something," he said. "That alone signals that it is a serious matter that the commission considers to be very grave."

Gloria Allred, who has sued many powerful men over sexual misconduct allegations, said in a statement: "Justice Johnson is entitled to a full and fair hearing before the judicial Commission. If the allegations are substantiated, I believe that he should be removed from the bench."

Allred's daughter, Lisa Bloom, represents one of Johnson's accusers. Allred and Bloom have separate law practices.

Following the conclusion of Johnson's hearing, "If the commission determines that the charges are proven by clear and convincing evidence, it is empowered to remove, censure, publicly admonish, or privately discipline the justice," according to a document released by the Commission on Judicial Performance.

The document adds that any determination to remove, censure, or admonish Johnson would be subject to review by the Supreme Court if Johnson petitioned it.

The broad accusations against Johnson range from lewd sexual remarks to unwanted touching and offers of quid quo pro. The sexual misconduct accusations against Johnson stem from both his time as a federal magistrate judge and as a state appellate justice. He's also accused of yelling at his staff.

In total, he faces one count of willful misconduct, the highest of three levels of misconduct, eight counts of sexual harassment and gender discrimination, one count of poor demeanor, and one count of demeaning the judicial office via being intoxicated.

While he has denied the most serious charges, Johnson has said at times he has crossed personal and professional boundaries, made lewd jokes and drank. He's pointed to complimentary comments his accusers have made about him, especially while he was being considered for an appointment to the state Supreme Court.

The special masters who will hear his case were appointed by the California Supreme Court. They are Judith L. Haller of the 4th District Court of Appeal, Division One; Louis R. Hanoian, a San Diego County Superior Court judge; and William D. Lehman, an Imperial County Superior Court judge. The examiners for the CJP are Emma Bradford, Mark A. Lizarraga and Bradford L. Battson.

Troves of electronic evidence have been submitted by the examiners who intend to show the special masters emails and texts between Johnson and his alleged victims as well as communications between the alleged victims.

Johnson's legal team is made up of Thomas J. Warwick, Jr. of Grimes & Warwick, Reginald A. Vitek of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek, Willie L. Brown, Jr. and Meyer, who are sole practitioners. Brown is the former mayor of San Francisco and speaker of the state Assembly.

In filings submitted to the commission, Johnson's team outlined exhibits charting what appears to be an alternate series of events based on digital communications. Some vague exhibit numbers include references to church programs, family photos, and various maladies including. "Johnson Cyst Photos."