Judge Who Refused Late Capital Appeal Is Fined $100K for Failing to Disclose Assets
The Texas judge in the news for refusing to keep the courthouse open for a late-filed capital appeal is facing a record $100,000 fine for failing to disclose more than $2 million in assets.
The Texas Ethics Commission fined Sharon Keller, presiding judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, in an order made public today, according to the Houston Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News and the San Antonio Express-News.
The ethics commission said Keller failed to disclose interest in eight properties valued at $2.4 million in 2006 and at $2.8 million in 2007, as well as stock and other income.
Keller had amended her financial disclosure forms last year, saying her father had made investments for her and her son without her knowledge, the Express-News says.
In January, a special master considering ethics charges against Keller for refusing the late capital appeal said she doesn’t deserve to be reprimanded, although she could have been more helpful. Ethics prosecutors are challenging the recommendation.
