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Casey Moreland
Casey Moreland is a former judge for the Davidson County General Sessions Court Division X in Davidson County, Tennessee. He is based in Nashville. He was first elected to Division IX of this court in 1995 to replace the late Donald Washburn. He was re-elected in 1998, 2006, and 2014.[1] Following his March 28, 2017, arrest on federal corruption charges, Moreland announced his resignation from the court, effective April 4, 2017.[2]
Biography
Moreland received his undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin in 1980 and his J.D. from the Nashville School of Law. Moreland worked as an attorney in private practice from 1985 until his election to the Davidson County General Sessions Court in 1995.[1]
Elections
2014
See also: Tennessee judicial elections, 2014
Moreland ran for re-election to the Davidson County General Sessions Court.
Primary: He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on May 6, 2014.
General: He won without opposition in the general election on August 7, 2014.
[3][4][5]
Noteworthy events
Arrested on federal charges (2017)
On March 28, 2017, Moreland was arrested by federal officials and charged with obstructing an investigation, tampering with a witness, and retaliating against a witness.[6]
According to court documents, the FBI began investigating Moreland in January 2017 based on allegations that he used his power as a judge in exchange for sexual favors, free travel, and lodging. Moreland then allegedly tried to bribe a woman who had made public allegations against him to sign an affidavit saying that she had lied. The documents also said that Moreland had discussed plans to plant drugs on the woman and orchestrate a traffic stop in order to impair her credibility.[7]
In an interview with News 2 in February 2017, Moreland said that he thought a lot of the allegations against him had been sensationalized. He admitted to having a relationship with a woman who appeared in court, but said her cases had been wrapped up before he had really met her. He also revealed that he began receiving treatment for alcoholism, saying, "It's a battle that I'll have the rest of my life."[8]
The Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct began its own investigation into the allegations against Moreland. After his arrest, state legislative leaders called on Moreland to resign. "If he does not, we urge the Board of Judicial Conduct to act in an expeditious manner," stated the legislators. The most severe punishment the board could hand down would be a recommendation to the legislature to remove Moreland from his position.[9]
At a court hearing on March 31, 2017, Moreland's attorney announced that the judge would resign, effective April 4, 2017, ending the investigation by the Board of Judicial Conduct. During the hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Joe Brown sustained the charges against Moreland but allowed him to be released to home confinement.[2]
Accused of misconduct, cleared by board (2015)
On November 7, 2014, Judge Melissa Blackburn filed a complaint against Judge Moreland, claiming that he bullied female court employees and threw mattresses and papers in the offices of the mental health court.[10] The Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct cleared Moreland of the misconduct complaint in July 2015. The board's report said, "It was the unanimous decision of the investigative panel that the factual allegations in the complaint, which would have given rise to a potential violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct, did not occur."[10] Moreland maintained that the incident in question did not happen and expressed confusion over why the complaint was made. "She was obviously given bad information, and she acted on it. Hopefully with some experience on the bench, she’ll learn to filter some of the bad information we get every day," he said.[10]
Public reprimand over domestic violence case (2014)
On October 22, 2014, the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct issued Moreland a public reprimand. The board found that Moreland had violated three judicial canons by: failing to comply with the Judicial Code, failing to act in a manner that promotes the "independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary," and abusing the prestige of his judicial office by advancing his own interests.[11][12] The full text of the reprimand can be found here.
After a domestic abuse case in which David Chase beat his girlfriend, Lauren Bull, Judge Moreland decided not to hold Chase in jail for the 12-hour "cooling-off" period that is allowed by law for such situations. However, upon his release, Chase returned to Bull as she was packing her things to leave him and beat her a second time. The incidents occurred on June 8, 2014.
At issue was a statement by Bryan Lewis, Chase's attorney, who said that Bull and Chase were not actually dating. That was later found to be false, but allowed Chase to be released before the 12 hours were up. The bail order noted, "Not domestic relationship per Judge Moreland."[13]
Chase was again arrested for aggravated assault by strangulation, vandalism, and for interfering with a 911 call. He was later released with bond set at $15,000. Moreland stated, "Other than the victim, nobody feels any worse than I do about what happened."[13]
In July, state Senators Brian Kelsey (R), Mike Bell (R), and Randy McNally (R) filed a complaint with the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct, which stated: "Judge Moreland has engaged in actual impropriety and should be severely sanctioned by the board."[14]
"I did what I did not for Mr. Lewis. I did what I thought was right at the time. I regret it. I apologize for it, and I will make sure to get more information next time," said Moreland.[14]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Casey Moreland Tennessee judge. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Tennessee State Courts, "General Sessions Court Judges"
- Tennessee State Courts, "Tennessee Judicial District Map"
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 General Sessions Court of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County, "Casey E. Moreland," accessed August 20, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Tennessean, "Nashville Judge Casey Moreland resigns amid federal corruption charges," March 31, 2017
- ↑ The Tennessean.com, "List of candidates in May primary races," February 21, 2014
- ↑ WKRN.com, "Election Results for May 6, 2014 Primary," May 7, 2014
- ↑ Nashville Election Commission, "August 7 Election Results (Unofficial)," accessed August 19, 2014
- ↑ WKRN.com, "Judge Casey Moreland arrested on federal charges, in custody," March 29, 2017
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Feds: Moreland tried to pay woman $6,100 to recant allegations against him," March 28, 2017
- ↑ WKRN.com, "Embattled judge Casey Moreland opens up on allegations for first time," February 23, 2017
- ↑ The Tennessean, "As resignation calls grow, are more charges to come for Casey Moreland?" March 30, 2017
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 The Tennessean, "Nashville Judge Casey Moreland cleared of misconduct," July 17, 2015
- ↑ Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct, "Letter to Judge Casey Moreland," October 22, 2014
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Judge Casey Moreland reprimanded by state judicial board," October 24, 2014
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 The Tennessean, "Nashville contractor charged in second domestic assault after judge waived 'cooling-off' rule," June 11, 2014
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 The Tennessean, "Senators file complaint against Judge Casey Moreland," July 12, 2014
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee
State courts:
Tennessee Supreme Court • Tennessee Court of Appeals • Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals • Tennessee Circuit Court • Tennessee Chancery Courts • Tennessee Criminal Court • Tennessee Probate Court • Tennessee General Sessions Court • Tennessee Juvenile Court • Tennessee Municipal Court
State resources:
Courts in Tennessee • Tennessee judicial elections • Judicial selection in Tennessee
