Suspended judge won't be tried on weapons charges after witness refuses to testify
Judge Vance Day. Photo from Ballotpedia.
An Oregon judge who faced ethics charges after refusing to perform same-sex marriages won’t be tried on criminal charges of letting a felon handle weapons.
Prosecutors dropped charges against Judge Vance Day of Marion County on Tuesday after an unidentified key witness refused to testify, report the Salem Statesman Journal and the Oregonian.
Day was accused of letting a former Navy Seal handle guns with members of Day’s family on two occasions after the veteran pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in Day’s courtroom. The DUI charge was later reduced to a misdemeanor. Day had been charged with official misconduct and illegal possession of a firearm for allegedly aiding the veteran’s crime.
The Oregon Supreme Court suspended Day from the bench for three years in March for conduct that included allowing the felon to handle the guns. The court also concluded Day violated judicial ethics rules when he developed a scheme to refuse to perform gay marriages in which staffers would tell gay couples that Day was unavailable on the date in question.
Day argued his refusal to perform the marriages was based on his sincere religious beliefs and the Constitution protected him.
The Oregon Supreme Court said it didn’t need to reach the constitutional issue because Day’s misconduct in the gun handling incidents, along with misstatements during factfinding inquiries, justified the three-year suspension. The misstatements concerned the Navy Seal incident and his allegation that a soccer official grabbed him at his son’s game.
Day’s lawyers released a statement to the newspapers covering the prosecutors’ decision. “It is disappointing that it took nearly two years and an incredible waste of our public funds to reach this result,” the statement said. “Judge Day was looking forward to finally receiving a transparent and public airing of the facts, which we believe would have led to an acquittal on all charges.”
