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Joe Dale Walker
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Joe Dale Walker was a judge for the 13th Chancery District of Mississippi.[1] He was re-elected in 2010 for a term that would have expired in 2014.[2] Walker was suspended, with pay, by the Mississippi Supreme Court in February 2014. He resigned from the court in May 2014. He was then convicted of obstruction of justice and sentenced to five months of prison in January 2015.[3](See below.)
Education
Walker earned a B.B.A. from the University of Mississippi. He was awarded a J.D. from Mississippi College and was admitted to the bar in 1978.[4]
Noteworthy events
Walker convicted of obstruction of justice (2015)
In February 2014, Walker was suspended from the bench, with pay, by the Mississippi Supreme Court. At the time, the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance was investigating an inquiry regarding inappropriate actions related to a conservatorship that came before Walker's court. He resigned from the court in May 2014.[5][6]
Walker's nephew, Chad Teater, submitted one of five bids for the construction of a new home for the ward. After seeing that Teater's bid was the lowest, Walker told him to raise it. Walker transferred the case to another judge due to his nephew's involvement. After the judge awarded Teater the contract, it was transferred back to Walker. A witness was subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury with all documents related to the conservatorship. Walker met with the witness and, after he learned of the federal grand jury subpoena, said that Teater's original bid needed to be "someplace else".[7]
In March 2014, Walker told the FBI that he had never met with the witness or told the witness to get rid of the bid. Walker pleaded to guilty to a federal charge of obstruction of justice in October 2014, and he was sentenced to five months of prison in January 2015. He was convicted for witness tampering alleged in documents filed in U.S. District Court in Jackson. Teater, who allegedly lied about the issue to a federal grand jury and to the FBI, was also sentenced to a five month prison term.[7]
Homeschooling order (2011)
On March 23, 2011, Judge Walker ordered school attendance officers to provide him with the names and addresses of homeschooled students. Upon service of the order, these officers contacted the parents of the students, in their respective districts, to inform them of the judge’s order.
Families were asked to notify attendance officers if they intended to challenge Walker's order. At least one homeschooling advocacy group responded with a lawsuit. The Home School Legal Defense Association stated on its website, "At this point we do not know why Judge Walker is seeking this information, but we believe it is an inappropriate use of judicial power. There is no case before the court that gave rise to the issuance of this order. It appears to be simply information that the judge would like to have."[8]
It was determined that Judge Walker sought the information regarding homeschooled children in the district to determine which parents were attempting to get around school attendance laws. The Mississippi Supreme Court became involved, stayed Walker's order and demanded to know what authority he relied upon when he requested the information.[9]
In late April, the Mississippi Supreme Court vacated Walker's order to collect the names and addresses of homeschooled students.[10]
2010 election
Walker was re-elected after running unopposed.[11][2]
- Main article: Mississippi judicial elections, 2010
See also
External links
- The New American, "Mississippi Judge Goes Fishing for Home-schoolers," April 14, 2011
- State of Mississippi Judiciary, Chancery Courts
Footnotes
- ↑ State of Mississippi, "Chancery Judges & Support Staff," August 14, 2013
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2010 General Election Results by County," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ WAPT.com, "Ex-Chancery Judge Joe Dale Walker pleads guilty," October 8, 2014
- ↑ Martindale, "Judge Profile: Joe Dale Walker," accessed February 25, 2014
- ↑ The Republic, "Miss. Supreme Court orders judge suspended while discipline case under review," February 22, 2014
- ↑ Mississippi Supreme Court, "Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance vs. Chancery Court Judge Joe Dale Walker," January 13, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Washington Times, "Ex-Chancery Judge Joe Dale Walker sentenced," January 9, 2015
- ↑ HSLDA Opposing Mississippi Court Order
- ↑ The New American, "Mississippi Judge Goes Fishing for Home-schoolers," April 14, 2011
- ↑ The New American, "Mississippi Supreme Court Overrules Judge Seeking Homeschoolers' Information," April 27, 2011
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Sample Official Election Ballot, 2010 General Election"
Federal courts:
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Mississippi, Southern District of Mississippi • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Mississippi, Southern District of Mississippi
State courts:
Mississippi Supreme Court • Mississippi Court of Appeals • Mississippi circuit courts • Mississippi Chancery Court • Mississippi county courts • Mississippi justice courts • Mississippi youth courts • Mississippi Municipal Courts
State resources:
Courts in Mississippi • Mississippi judicial elections • Judicial selection in Mississippi
