Court Staff, Judiciary Mum on Misconduct Claims Against San Jose Appellate Judge
Daniel Potter, the Sixth District clerk, declined to answer any questions about the allegations. "The court will not be commenting on any personnel matter," Potter said.
December 07, 2017 at 06:50 PM
4 minute read
Conrad Rushing. Credit: Jason Doiy/ ALM
State judiciary and court leaders remained silent Thursday about the alleged misconduct of Conrad Rushing, the longtime state appellate judge in San Jose who resigned while facing allegations of sexual harassment and workplace improprieties.
The San Jose Mercury News reported Wednesday that a law firm, retained by the Judicial Council's legal services division on behalf of the Sixth District Court of Appeal, concluded that Rushing engaged in sexual conduct at work, including looking at nude photos of women while in his chambers.
Rushing allegedly also gave men on his staff better assignments, commented regularly on women's appearances and asked women lawyers to pack personal items in his apartment before it was fumigated, according to the Mercury News, which cited a report issued in May by the Sacramento law firm Ellis Buehler Makus.
Daniel Potter, the Sixth District clerk, declined to answer any questions about the allegations or Rushing.
“The court will not be commenting on any personnel matter,” Potter said.
Rushing, the administrative presiding justice of the Sixth District for the last 14 years, retired with little fanfare on Monday. He notified Gov. Jerry Brown in a letter dated Oct. 31 that he intended to leave on Dec. 4, saying only that it was “an honor and privilege to serve the people of the state of California.”
Rushing was listed as a panelist at a two-day legal conference on trade secret issues in Arizona starting Thursday. He could not be reached for comment.
Ellis Buehler Makus, which specializes in employment investigations and training, has been retained by the branch's legal services division in the past to review workplace-related allegations, according to a lawyer familiar with its work.
Name partner Leslie Ellis did not return a message Thursday. The judicial council has declined to say how much was paid for the firm's work.
Commission on Judicial Performance director and chief counsel Victoria Henley declined to comment on whether the agency was investigating Rushing for any violations of judicial canons.
The commission does have authority to discipline former judges for conduct that occurred before they resigned or retired. Although the agency cannot remove a judge from office at that point, a public admonishment or censure can alert the community to his or her actions.
The commission had regularly scheduled, private meetings on Wednesday and Thursday.
The Judicial Council's policy-making body, led by Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, has also remained silent on the accusations. A council spokesman referred questions to the Sixth District Court of Appeal.
Rushing's departure leaves two vacancies on the San Jose-based appellate court. Brown has yet to replace Associate Justice Miguel Marquez, who resigned in May 2016 to take an executive position with Santa Clara County. Cantil-Sakauye recently appointed Associate Justice Franklin Elia to the court's acting administrative presiding justice.
Rushing's resignation letter is posted below.
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