Judge who paid defendant's $1 bond is suspended
Judge Barry Schwartz of the Denver County Court was under investigation after paying a defendant’s $1 bond last year. He has been suspended for one week without pay. (Photo from the Denver County Court)
A Denver County Court judge who was under investigation after paying a defendant’s $1 bond last year has been suspended for one week without pay, according to a story by Denver7.
Judge Barry Schwartz of the Denver County Court was also publicly censured by Denver Mayor Mike Johnston on Friday after a Denver Judicial Discipline Commission review, the Denver7 story says.
Schwartz had set a $1 bail for a defendant in a 2016 misdemeanor assault case when she appeared in court in August after failing to appear several times, according to a story by the Denver Post.
When the defendant’s attorney indicated that she did not have a dollar, Schwartz asked his court staff for cash. A staff member then gave him a dollar, which he passed to the defense attorney, according to the public censure and video of the incident, the Denver Post reports.
“By personally facilitating the posting of bail for a defendant, the mayor finds that Judge Schwartz compromised the impartiality, integrity and independence of the judiciary,” the two-page censure order reads, according to the Denver Post. “Regardless of the bond amount, and although Judge Schwartz denies any favoritism towards the defense or antipathy to the prosecution, Judge Schwartz’s conduct openly favored the defendant in open court.”
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