Texas judge suspended, ordered to ungergo psych evaluation after bizarre racial comments to lawyer
A Texas federal judge was temporarily suspended from overseeing cases and ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation after she made a series of racially charged remarks against a Latino lawyer, according to court documents.The Judicial Council of the Fifth Circuit initiated its investigation Aug.11 after civil rights lawyer Ezra Young filed a misconduct complaint against US District Judge Ada Brown.The complaint stemmed from an April 24 hearing after Brown, who is black and of Native American descent, summoned him to appear before her several months after she barred him from litigating cases in her Dallas courtroom.While questioning Young over sealed documents that she had discovered on his personal website, Brown accused him of mistreating black attorneys.“I think what’s happening, here, quite candidly, is you are very intimidated for some reason, Mr.
Young, with black excellence, in light of your white mediocrity.Yeah.
Right?” Brown said, according to a transcript posted online by Bloomberg Law.“You should write that down.I mean … you look like a White man, right?” the judge added.Young, a Columbia law school graduate, then revealed that he was Latino and had taken his wife’s last name“Well, you are White-presenting; is that fair to say?” Brown snapped back before the lawyer told her, “I’m fair-skinned, Your Honor, yes.”Young, who is representing a black law professor who filed a lawsuit against Southern Methodist University, declined an interview request from The Post but said his family is from Mexico.During the hearing, Brown accused Young of addressing non-black attorneys “with honorifics” and black lawyers by their first names.“You’re the white savior, come to save all the stupid black lawyers in Texas who need your help, from New York,” Brown also told Young during the court session.Young filed his complaint on May 14 and raised concerns about Brown’s mental health condition.Brown issued a response July 28 and denied h...