Thomas Porteous

Thomas Porteous
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Current Court Information:
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
Title:	Former Judge
Service:
Appointed by:	Bill Clinton
Active:	10/11/1994 - 12/8/2010
Preceded by:	Robert Collins
Personal History
Bachelors:	Louisiana State University (1968)
Law School:	Louisiana State University (1971)

G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. was an Article III federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. He joined the court in 1994 after being nominated by President Bill Clinton. Porteous was impeached for serious misconduct in judicial office on December 8, 2010, and was removed from office.

Early life and education

Porteous graduated from Louisiana State University earning both his Bachelor's Degree in 1968 and later graduated with his Law Degree in 1971.

Professional career

• Special counsel, Office of the State Attorney General, Louisiana, 1971-1973
• Private practice, Gretna, Louisiana, 1973-1980
• Chief, Felony Complaint Division, District Attorney's Office, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, 1973-1975
• Private practice, Metairie, Louisiana, 1980-1984
• City attorney, City of Harahan, Louisiana, 1982-1984
• Judge, 24th Judicial District Court of Louisiana, 1984-1994

Judicial career

Eastern District of Texas

On the unanimous recommendation of Louisiana U.S. Senators John Breaux and Bennett Johnston, Vance was nominated by President Bill Clinton to a seat vacated by Robert Collins. Porteous was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 7, 1994 on a Senate vote and received commission on October 11, 1994.

Impeachment trial

Articles of Impeachment Available Here

Summary of Articles of Impeachment Available Here

On January 12, 2009, the House voted to investigate Porteous for impeachable offenses due to allegations that he engaged in serious judicial misconduct. Porteous is charged with presiding over a trial in which the lawyers involved had given him money and is also accused of filing for bankruptcy under a false name. The hearings occurred on November 17 and 18, 2009. On January 21, 2010, the House Judiciary Committee Task Force on Impeachment voted unanimously to recommend impeachment and on March 10, 2010 the House voted unanimously to impeach. Porteous next faces a trial before the Senate.

The Judicial Conference of the United States reported in June of 2008 that Porteous may deserve impeachment due to the severity of the allegations. If the full House impeaches Porteous, the case would advance to a Senate trial, which is conducted similarly to a presidential impeachment. The House only needs a simple majority of its 435 members to approve the impeachment. The Senate needs a two-thirds vote of senators to convict.

The allegations against Porteous were uncovered during the FBI’s "Operation Wrinkled Robe", an investigation of state judges in Jefferson Parish where Porteous served until his 1994 appointment to the federal bench. The FBI's 5 1/2 year investigation put court-ordered wiretaps and video cameras in the parish courthouse and brought 14 convictions of individuals, including two state judges who were sent to federal prison.

In addition to making false statements under oath and taking gifts from attorneys, the charges against Porteous include hiding assets from the bankruptcy estate, leaving gambling losses off the list of debts and getting short-term credit from casinos after the bankruptcy judge ordered him to get approval of the court before taking on any debt. The probe also uncovered evidence that Porteous rejected a request to recuse himself from a case without revealing that he had a history of financial relationships with at least one attorney involved and leaving lawyers gifts off financial disclosure statements from 1994-2000.

Porteous stepped aside from all civil cases involving the federal government and all criminal cases in 2003 after a relative of bail bondsman Louis Marcotte said the bondsman who is currently serving a prison term for racketeering had paid for car repairs and arranged another favor for Porteous. After further investigation, Porteous was removed from bankruptcy cases. He is no longer filling any of his official duties, but continues to receive his judicial salary of $169,300.

Constitutional law experts have testified that Porteous is eligible for impeachment even though many of the accusations against him predate his federal judicial tenure.

Impeachment proceedings

Senate Committee

A bi-partisan Senate panel began proceedings against Porteous on March 17, 2010. Panel members are Democratic Senators Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), Tom Udall (N.M.), Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) and Ted Kaufman (Del.) and Republican Senators Orrin Hatch (Utah), John Barrasso (Wyo.), Jim DeMint (S.C.), Mike Johanns (Neb.), James Risch (Idaho) and Roger Wicker (Miss.). Senator Claire McCaskill is chairing the panel with Orrin Hatch acting as vice-chair.

Louisiana Senator Mary L. Landrieu is in support of the impeachment trial. She said, "Today, the Senate began impeachment proceedings against Judge Thomas Porteous Jr., a district court judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana. I supported this move. The charges against Judge Porteous of seeking and taking kickbacks are extremely serious and appear to be supported by overwhelming evidence. The Senate should now follow suit with the House to ensure that Judge Porteous no longer abuses the power with which the public entrusted him. Judge Porteous has already admitted to making mistakes during his tenure as a state and federal judge. Now the Senate must move forward to determine if those mistakes merit impeachment".

House Committee

The House Judiciary Committee Task Force on Impeachment began to hear testimony on Judge Porteuous at the impeachment proceedings on December 14, 2009. The testimony wrapped up on December 19, 2009. During the proceedings, many legal experts and those close to Porteous testified about the conduct the judge had engaged in.

One bail bondsman who had a close relationship with the judge, mentioned that the judge usually drank vodka cocktails during lunch. Also, the lawyer who handled his bankruptcy in 2001 said the judge filed his bankruptcy using the last name "Orteous" to avoid being in the paper and to get a more favorable settlement.

The 12-member House Task Force voted 8-0 (4 members were not present) to recommend impeachment. "His long-standing pattern of corrupt conduct, so utterly lacking in honesty and integrity, demonstrates his unfitness to serve as a United States district court judge," said Representative Adam Schiff, who led the task force.

The House Judiciary Committee voted favorably to move the impeachment proceedings to a full House vote on January 21, 2010. Porteous faces four articles of impeachment. The impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives were scheduled on March 11, 2010.

The four articles of impeachment that Porteous is facing are:

• Article I-Engaging in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with the trust and confidence that is placed in him as a federal judge.
• Article II-Engaging in a longstanding pattern of corrupt conduct that demonstrates his unfitness to serve as a United States District Court Judge.
• Article III-Knowing and intentionally making false statements, under penalty of perjury, related to a personal bankruptcy filing and violating a bankruptcy court order.
• Article IV-Knowingly made material false statements about his past to the United States Senate and to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in order to obtain the position as United States District Court Judge.

The House of Representatives on March 11, 2010 voted unanimously to approve all four articles of impeachment on Thomas Porteous. Porteous will face a trial in the United States Senate. No date for a trial on the floor of the U.S. Senate has been set

Impeachment trial

On March 17, 2010, a Senate panel began the process of moving the impeachment trial forward. This started by appointing a twelve person committee who will oversee the Senate trial. Missouri U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill will lead the twelve person panel as McCaskill is the Chairperson of a Senate Subcommittee that oversees abuses in the federal government. Senator McCaskill was appointed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to lead the committee

During the session on March 17th, Porteous was served with a summons notices asking the judge or a representative to respond to all of the four articles of impeachment against him. Also, the summons requires the judge to be present when the 12 person committee holds related hearings.

Republican Orrin Hatch of Utah will be the Vice-Chairman of the Committee. The Democrats serving alongside McCaskill are Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Ted Kaufman of Delaware, Tom Udall of New Mexico, and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.

The Republicans serving alongside Senator Hatch are John Barasso of Wyoming, Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Mike Johanns of Nebraska, Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and James Risch of Idaho.

Lawsuit on impeachment panel

Porteous sued the House Judiciary Committee to delay impeachment proceedings planned against him, claiming that his Fifth Amendment rights were violated. The judge said in his lawsuit that the task force in charge of planning his impeachment failed to grant him immunity in giving testimony to the task force. Judge Richard Leon, who heard the temporary restraining order case, refused to delay the opening of congressional hearings. Leon counseled attorneys for Porteous that they may still file for an injunction later in the year, but that their chances for success would be a "very, very long shot".

Conviction

This past week, the United States Senate convicted Federal District Court Judge Thomas Porteous of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on four impeachment charges. He was convicted of accepting money and favors from individuals before his court, lying during his judicial confirmation and filing for bankruptcy under alternative names. He was convicted unanimously of accepting money, and with majorities on the other three counts and barred from holding future federal office. Porteous was only the eighth federal judge to be convicted by the senate and was less than two years away from retirement.

News Articles

• The Times Picayune, "Judge Thomas Porteous impeachment vote expected after Thanksgiving," September 21, 2010
• New York Times "Impeachment Evidence Grows Against U.S. Judge" December 20, 2009
• Wall Street Journal "House Weighs Impeachment of Judge in an Unusual Move", December 1, 2009
• Associated Press "House panel opens impeachment hearings vs. judge", November 17, 2009
• The Times-Picayune "Wheels of Congress grind slowly in Judge Thomas Porteous impeachment", November 17, 2009
• The Times Picayune, "Editorial: A rank odor in the judge's chambers", September 21, 2008
• The Times Picayune, "History on the side of accused judge", September 21, 2008
• Suspension recommended for attorney of ex-Judge Thomas Porteous

External links

• Judge Porteous's Biography from the Federal Judicial Center

References

Federal judicial offices
Preceded by: Robert Collins	Eastern District of Texas 1994–2010	Succeeded by: '