It’s not too often that you see a courtroom erupt in complete chaos, but that’s exactly what happened recently in a Cincinnati court. A former judge, who had been convicted of using her position to give a break to a family member, was literally dragged out of the courtroom to jail by one of the bailiffs.
Tracie Hunter used to be a juvenile court judge until her 2014 conviction and six-month sentence for unethically passing on information to her brother in regards to one of his job disputes. Needless to say, this wasn’t looked upon too fondly by the first judge in her case, and Tracie Hunter lost her job and was sentenced to the six-month sentence. However, she had been fighting this sentence for six long years.
Apparently, Judge Hunter’s brother, Stephen Hunter, was about to be fired from his youth corrections job after he was accused of assaulting a juvenile offender. Now ex-judge Tracie Hunter illegally shared some information about the young offender with her brother so that he could keep his job, according to a report from the Metro.
It ultimately did no good as Stephen Hunter was still fired from his job. Moreover, prosecutors had a field day with the actions of his sister Tracie, who was found to be improperly demanding documents and passing them to her brother.
Even though Tracie Hunter was first sentenced to six months in prison, the time where she was mandated to report for her sentence had been delayed a number of times until last July, when she was finally mandated by one Judge Dinkelacker to begin her sentence immediately.
Throughout her trial and the lengthy appeals process, Hunter has steadfastly maintained her innocence. She told WLWT the following:
“I did not violate any laws, nor did I secure a public contract. I didn’t do anything to keep the employment of my brother secure. Indeed, he had worked for the court for seven years before I was even elected as a judge. They should drop these ridiculous charges immediately. I believe they are extremely unrighteous and unlawful.”
As the trial wore on, Judge Dinkelacker noted the immense amount of postcards he received calling for him to exonerate Judge Hunter. Indeed, he even received one from the Mayor of Cincinnati himself, John Cranley.
To that end, Hunter’s lawyers say they aren’t done advocating for her. They are even planning a motion to dismiss the case completely against her.
Do you think this was a corrupt judge who got what was coming to her or do you think this woman has been unfairly accused? Let us know!