Federal Judge Samuel Kent Resigns, as Senate Impeachment Trial Looms
After the Senate began gearing up yesterday for a historic impeachment trial of an imprisoned U.S. District Court judge, he had apparently already decided to throw in the towel.
In a letter that he hand-delivered yesterday to two Senate officials who had come to serve him with a subpoena in prison, Judge Samuel Kent resigned from office, reports the Houston Chronicle.
His resignation was announced today in Washington, D.C., at the organizational meeting of a bipartisan Senate committee that was appointed to prosecute the case against Kent.
Kent pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice earlier this year, in a case concerning his testimony about his since-admitted nonconsensual sexual contact with two federal court employees in Texas. He is serving a 33-month sentence at a prison medical facility in the Northeast.
If accepted by President Barack Obama, his resignation will be effective June 30.
Additional coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “US Senate Gears Up for Judge Kent’s Impeachment Trial”
