Former Jackson judge pleads guilty to willful neglect of duty

By Douglas Levy Dolan Media Newswires The Associated Press has reported that James Justin, a former Jackson County judge accused of dismissing traffic tickets issued to his wife and court staff without just cause, pleaded guilty Feb. 5 to four misdemeanor counts of willful neglect of duty. He entered the pleas before lawyers gave closing arguments in a jury trial that began Monday before Ingham County Circuit Judge William Collette As reported in Michigan Lawyers Weekly, the Michigan Supreme Court on Jan. 27, removed Justin, of 12th District Court, from office in a unanimous decision. The Judicial Tenure Commission had accused him of several abuses of judicial power, in addition to the ticket fixing. Justin's transgressions were so plentiful that Chief Justice Robert P. Young Jr. noted in In re Justin (Lawyers Weekly No. 06-77534, 31 pages) that Justin "failed to follow the law, apparently believing that it simply did not apply to him." Willful neglect of public duty is punishable by no more than a year in jail and a fine of a $1,000 or less. A sentencing date was not set. Published: Mon, Feb 11, 2013

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