Miami-Dade Judge Caroll Kelly. Photo: Miami-Dade Circuit Court.

Miami-Dade County Court Judge Carroll Kelly, facing ethics charges for participating in a courtroom television show, has struck back at the Judicial Qualifications Commission with allegations that it violated the First Amendment of the U.S. and Florida Constitutions by trying to stop production.

The show, "Protection Court," featured real-life litigants from the court's domestic violence division. The JQC claimed Kelly's participation violated six judicial canons, alleging she gave litigants "minimal notice" and misled her superiors about the filming.

But the judge alleged its real motive was to stop the show and deter judges from allowing cameras into courtrooms — a violation of rights to free press and free speech.

In an answer brief filed Tuesday, Kelly's Miami attorney David Rothman argued she did nothing wrong, noting that she sought and relied on an advisory opinion from the Florida Supreme Court Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee before taking part. The brief said that opinion found the question was "a matter of judicial administration, rather than judicial ethics."

The brief said Kelly also looked to the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration, a Florida Supreme Court opinion and JEAC opinions from Texas, New York and Rhode Island, and consulted with counsel for the Miami-Dade Circuit and other attorneys.

While the JQC accused Kelly of lending the prestige of her office "to advance the private interests" of herself and others, the jurist said that wasn't true.

"Judge Kelly's only motivation for being involved in this program was to educate and show people how domestic violence court works and how the court can help families involved in violence," Kelly's brief said. "Judge Kelly has not been compensated in any way for her participation in the filming of this program."

Kelly denied misleading Chief Judge Bertila Soto about the show and denied misleading investigators about her authority to stop production. Kelly argued the JQC took her words out of context, as she had said she could stop her own participation in the show, not the show itself.

The brief also accused the JQC of breach of contract and breach of good faith, attaching a letter from September 2019 in which it agreed to drop charges against Kelly if she stopped taking part in the show.

The judge claimed she reluctantly accepted but that the JQC refused to close the case after Protection Court aired previously filmed footage. The JQC then allegedly asked Miami-Dade Circuit Court if it would file a lawsuit over the show, but the court declined.

'Fake news'

The 104-page answer brief featured multiple exhibits, including a court filing that said Kelly was "stunned and distraught" when she found out about the investigation and a response to the second notice of investigation that said Kelly believed people should see how domestic violence court works and that the allegations have "decimated a terrific person."

"Based upon the tone and tenor of Judge Kelly's first appearance before the commission, it is clear the commission feels strongly Protection Court is, like Judge Judy, fake news and detrimental to the perception of the judicial system by the general public," Kelly's response to the second notice of investigation said. "And, based upon the course set by the commission, the fact this amended notice was even filed, and that it contains allegations either previously resolved or utterly without merit, it is just as clear the intent of the commission is to stop the broadcast."

In response to allegations that Kelly gave litigants "minimal notice" before presenting them with a release form, the brief said multiple signs in English and Spanish were posted inside and outside the courtroom explaining the filming, and that two victim advocates were on-hand to let people know they didn't have to sign.

Some litigants who didn't consent were still filmed, but Kelly noted that was not a violation of Florida law because court proceedings are public and said footage of those litigants wasn't aired.

JQC counsel Alex Williams did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Kelly has moved to enforce a settlement agreement with the JQC over the show and asked the court to drop two related counts with prejudice.

Read Judge Kelly's answer brief:

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