Valeriano Saucedo
Valeriano Saucedo was a judge for the Superior Court of Tulare County in Tulare County, California.[1] Saucedo joined the court in 2001.[2] He was removed from his post by the California Commission on Judicial Performance on December 1, 2015, due to judicial misconduct.[3]
Education
Saucedo earned his B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1973 and his J.D. from Stanford University in 1976.[4]
Career
Prior to joining the court in 2001, Saucedo was an attorney in private practice.[2]
Noteworthy events
Saucedo removed from office for ethics violations (2015)
On December 19, 2014, the California Commission on Judicial Performance (CJP) instituted formal proceedings against Saucedo, alleging that he had sent an anonymous letter to the husband of his courtroom clerk accusing the clerk of having an affair "in an attempt to establish a closer relationship with her." Furthermore, the commission's complaint alleged that Saucedo had given his clerk gifts, mostly in the form of cash, which included $14,000 to help pay for a BMW and $8,000 toward a trip to Disneyland.[5][6]
The commission charged Saucedo with the "willful misconduct in office, conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice that brings the judicial office into disrepute, and improper action within the meaning of article VI, section 18 of the California Constitution providing for removal, censure, or public or private admonishment of a judge."[6] A full list of the allegations, can be found here.
On April 6, 2015, a three-judge panel appointed by the California Supreme Court heard evidence on the allegations against Saucedo. The judge testified that he gave his clerk gifts and money only because he wanted to help her out financially, and that he had tried to be a mentor to the clerk. He further testified that there had been no sexual or romantic relationship between them and that things had spun out of control. Saucedo said, “That was one of the darkest moments of my life.”[7] At the end of the hearing, findings by the panel were reported to the CJP which determines if there is clear and convincing evidence of misconduct, and if so, what punishment should be meted out.[7]
The panel released its findings on July 8, which stated that Saucedo did violate the judicial code.[8]
| “ | Viewing the entire course of events, we determine Judge Saucedo brought the judicial office into disrepute by acting in a manner that an objective observer would find harmful to the public esteem for the judicial office, thus engaging in prejudicial misconduct.[9] | ” |
| —Judicial ethics panel[8] | ||
The report also stated that although he violated judicial ethics, no one has claimed that the allegations affected the cases he presided over.[8]
The CJP heard arguments on the case on October 7.[10] Nine of the 11 commission members were in attendance, and each side had half an hour to make their case in front of the commission.[11]
The commission issued its decision on December 1 ordering that Saucedo be removed from office and explained the decision by "[t]he deceitful, calculated and unseemly nature of the judge’s misconduct, compounded by his lack of candor in response to the commission’s investigation and untruthful testimony under oath before the masters."[12] His removal was effective on December 31.[13] Saucedo petitioned the California Supreme Court to review the decision, but they denied to consider the case in May 2016.[14]
Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ California Courts, "Trial Courts Roster," accessed January 16, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Fresno Bee, "Tulare County judge faces discipline over gift allegations involving clerk," December 29, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbee - ↑ Martindale.com, "Judge Profile: Valeriano Saucedo," accessed January 16, 2015
- ↑ Visalia Times-Delta, "Visalia judge accused of ethics violations," December 29, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 State of California Commission on Judicial Performance, "Inquiry concerning Judge Valeriano Saucedo: Notice of Formal Proceedings," December 19, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Fresno Bee, "Tulare County judge accused of ethics violation takes stand," April 6, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 The Fresno Bee, "Report says Tulare County judge violated judicial ethics," July 8, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Visalia Delta-Times, "Hearing set for Tulare County judge," July 20, 2015
- ↑ Visalia Times-Delta, "Saucedo argues his innocence," October 8, 2015
- ↑ Valley Voice, "Judicial Performance Commission Removes Saucedo from Office," December 3, 2015
- ↑ The Porterville Recorder, "Governor appoints two county judges," December 24, 2015
- ↑ Visalia Times-Delta, "State Supreme Court won’t hear Saucedo’s petition," May 26, 2016
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Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California
State courts:
California Supreme Court • California Courts of Appeal • California Superior Courts
State resources:
Courts in California • California judicial elections • Judicial selection in California