SEATTLE (AP) - Seattle’s prosecutor and public defender have accused a municipal court judge of improper conduct, claiming he has acted outside his role by urging prosecutors to recommend harsher sentences.
The Seattle Times reports City Attorney Pete Holmes and Department of Public Defense Director Anita Khandelwal sent a letter Wednesday to Seattle Municipal Court Presiding Judge Ed McKenna, asking the judge to step down from his leadership post and to change his behavior or recuse himself from criminal cases.
McKenna said in a statement that he takes “issue with the assertions” by Holmes and Khandelwal, but he will be issuing a formal response at a later time after he reviews the letter.
The prosecutor and public defender have not filed a formal complaint with the state Commission on Judicial Conduct.
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Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com
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