Olu A. Stevens
Olu A. Stevens was a judge of the Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 6th Division. He assumed office in 2009. He left office on January 2, 2023.
Stevens was appointed to the court by Governor Steve Beshear (D) on July 1, 2009.[1][2][3]
Effective April 18, 2016, Stevens was suspended with pay from the court while the Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission conducted an investigation into whether Stevens violated judicial ethics rules.[4] On August 8, Stevens began a 90-day suspension without pay. Read more below.
Education
Stevens received his undergraduate degree in psychology from Morehouse College in Atlanta in 1992 and his J.D. from George Washington University Law School in 1995.[5][6]
Career
- 2009-2023: Circuit court judge, 30th Judicial Circuit
- 2006-2009: Attorney, Stoll Keenon Ogden, PLLC, Louisville, Ky.
- 2002-2004: Assistant attorney of Jefferson County, Louisville, Ky.
- 1996-2006: Principal, Olu A. Stevens, PLLC, Louisville, Ky.
- 1996: Admitted to the Kentucky Bar [5][6]
Awards and associations
Awards
- 2001: General Practice Link Bar Leader of the Year Award, American Bar Association
- 2001: University of Louisville Adopted Alumni Society Award
- 2000: Outstanding Volunteer Lawyer Award, Legal Aid Society [5]
Associations
- Member, Louisville Bar Association
- Member, Kentucky Circuit Judges Association
- Member, American Bar Association [5]
Elections
2014
See also: Kentucky judicial elections, 2014
Stevens ran for re-election to the 30th Judicial Circuit.
General: He was unopposed in the general election on November 4, 2014.
[3]
2010
- See also: Kentucky judicial elections, 2010
Stevens was elected to the Thirtieth Circuit on November 2, 2010. He defeated challenger Thomas Joseph Cannon with 60.55 percent of the vote.[7][8]
| “ | I will continue to treat each person that comes before me with dignity and respect. I will continue to make decisions based upon an impartial application of the law to the facts of the case, without regard to the identity or the race of the litigant. I will continue to allow individuals who appear before me to fully present their positions before making a ruling on the case.[9] | ” |
| —Judge Olu Stevens[10] | ||
He also noted that he was the highest rated judge in the 2010 Louisville Bar Association Judicial Poll.[10]
Noteworthy events
Disagreements over jury dismissal and Facebook posts (2015)
In November 2014, Stevens dismissed a jury panel, at the request of a black public defender, because the panel was made up of 40 white people and one black person. Commonwealth Attorney Tom Wine of Jefferson County questioned Stevens' impartiality based on Facebook posts the judge had made about his decision to dismiss the jury. Stevens wrote, "Granting a defense motion to dismiss a jury panel of 40 whites and 1 black does not make me a racist. And calling people on racist language doesn’t make me a racist either," one post read.[11]
In a request to Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John D. Minton, Jr. sent on November 18, 2015, Wine asked that Judge Stevens be removed from all criminal cases. A day before Wine's request, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Dorislee Gilbert requested that Stevens be removed from two cases for "inflammatory" comments made online. Chief Justice Minton removed Stevens from those cases later that day.[12]
In his request, Wine asked the supreme court for clarification on whether Stevens had the power to dismiss a jury based on racial composition. He also said that Stevens' post claiming that Wine "set the media on (him) to deceive the people while he does his deeds" could cause jury members to be biased against the commonwealth attorney's office.[11] Stevens defended himself online:
| “ | Going to the Kentucky Supreme Court to protect the right to impanel all-white juries is not where we need to be in 2015. Do not sit silently. Stand up. Speak up.[9] | ” |
| —Olu Stevens[12] | ||
Sadiqa Reynolds, president and CEO of the Louisville Urban League, said that judges should have the right to dismiss a jury for lack of diversity. "I’m simply saying if the Kentucky Supreme Court rules that Judge Stevens did violate the law, then the law should be changed and if, in fact, there is no clear case law on the matter, it is past the time for creating it," she said.[12]
Chief Justice John D. Minton, Jr. ordered Stevens and Wine to undergo mediation conducted by a four-person panel. He made his decision on December 2, 2015, and gave the two until that Saturday to complete the mediation. He declined to remove Stevens from all criminal cases, saying "disqualification from all criminal cases would be highly disruptive not only for the litigants but for the justice system as a whole."[13]
On March 16, 2016, a state court of appeals ruled that Olu had not followed state law in dismissing the jury. It said that the law requires the jury pool, but not the jury panel, to represent a cross-section of the community. It ordered that Olu refrain from dismissing juries in the future unless he is following state law.[14] On June 9, 2016, the Kentucky Supreme Court heard the case. The court is expected to make issue a ruling within a few months.[15]
Judicial misconduct charges
On April 1, 2016, Stevens filed a federal lawsuit against the Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission for violating his First Amendment rights by sending him a notification saying that they intended to "sanction, suspend or remove" him from the bench because of his comments.[16] The Kentucky Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.[17]
Later in the month, the Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission charged Stevens with six counts of judicial misconduct related to the disagreements with Tom Wine. According to the commission, Stevens violated judicial ethics rules by posting on Facebook that Wine was a racist who wants "all-white juries" and calling defense attorneys hypocrites for not supporting him.[18] In mid-April, Stevens was suspended with pay while the Judicial Conduct Commission conducts its investigation.[4]
In early August, Stevens withdrew his federal lawsuit against the commission.[19] Just before his misconduct hearing was set to begin on August 8, the two sides announced that they had reached an agreement. Stevens said, "I recognize how serious it is to accuse someone, either expressly or implicitly, of racism," and apologized for statements he had made about Wine. Wine then released a statement accepting Stevens' apology. "I have had no personal animosity towards Judge Stevens and I have none now," he said. Stevens agreed to serve a 90-day suspension without pay. The commission voted 6-0 to accept the agreement.[20]
Under fire for criticizing victims (2015)
Stevens reportedly faced criticism by some members of the public after he reprimanded Jordan and Tommy Gray for "fostering" a racial stereotype in their 5-year-old daughter. Two years earlier, two armed black men had broken into the Gray's home while the young girl was watching television, and robbed them while holding the family at gunpoint. One of the robbers, Gregory Wallace, was sentenced on February 4, 2015. For the sentencing, Jordan Gray wrote a victim impact statement saying that her daughter was still afraid of all black men. "It has affected her friendships at school and our relationships with African-American friends," she wrote.[21] The parents believed that probation was not enough of a punishment for Wallace. The Grays were not present at the sentencing, but Stevens said he was "deeply offended that they would be victimized by an individual and express some kind of fear of all black men."[21] He also stated that although their daughter was victimized and couldn't help the way she feels, he believed the fault was with parents for "accepting that kind of mentality." He sentenced Wallace to five years of probation.[21]
After the sentencing, Stevens again was reportedly criticized and accused of being a racist. He and his family received alleged death threats resulting in the need for enhanced security. "I will not be intimidated and I am not deterred," he wrote on Facebook. He also stated in an interview, "I wasn't criticizing the victims, I was criticizing a statement that I thought was a generalization against an entire race of people."[22]
Various Facebook pages were created, both critical and supportive, including: Olu Stevens needs to be fired and Support Judge Olu Stevens.[23]
Law professor Ronald Rotunda said she believed Stevens violated the Code of Judicial Conduct. "The judge, acting like a pop psychologist, decides to attack the little girl and her parents. Then, after the judge … has a chance to cool down … he goes on Facebook and does it all over again. The judge should be a little more judicious," he said. There has also been support for Judge Stevens. Attorney Allan Cobb said of Stevens, "As a person and a judge, he loves people and wants each and every person he meets to live the best, most positive and most profound life they can."[22]
On November 20, an estimated 100 demonstrators calling themselves the "West Louisville Urban Coalition" rallied across from the Hall of Justice building. Among them was Stevens' wife, Raymonda Stevens. She said, "It is about justice, it is about equality, it is about inclusion."[24]
Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Governor Steve Beshear's Communications Office, "Governor Beshear Announces Landmark Judicial Appointments," July 1, 2009
- ↑ Kentucky State Board of Elections, "Statewide Results – 2010 General Election – Unofficial Results," October 27, 2011
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kentucky Secretary of State, "Election: 2014 Primary Election: Circuit Judge," accessed January 29, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 WDRB.com, "Louisville Judge Olu Stevens suspended while under investigation," April 15, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Official website of Judge Olu Steven, accessed November 17, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Martindale.com, "Judge Profile: Olu A. Stevens," accessed November 17, 2014
- ↑ Kentucky State Board of Elections, "2010 Primary Election Results," July 14, 2010
- ↑ Kentucky State Board of Elections, "2010 General Election Results," October 27, 2011
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Courier-Journal.com, "Voter Guide: Kentucky Circuit Court Judge Circuit 30, Division 6" (Broken)
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Wall Street Journal, "Prosecutors Want Judge Off Criminal Cases Because of Facebook Posts," November 18, 2015
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Courier-Journal, "Judge kicked off cases over online comments," November 19, 2015
- ↑ WFPL News, "Chief Justice Orders Mediation for Louisville Judge, Prosecutor," December 2, 2015
- ↑ WHAS 11, "Court of Appeals rules on Olu Stevens case," March 16, 2016
- ↑ WFPL, "Kentucky Supreme Court Hears Olu Stevens Jury Case," June 9, 2016
- ↑ WDRB.com, "Louisville Judge Olu Stevens sues state conduct commission over possible disciplinary action," April 1, 2016
- ↑ WDRB.com, "State seeks $100,000 to defend lawsuit filed by Louisville Judge Olu Stevens," May 5, 2016
- ↑ 89.3 WFPL, "Louisville Judge Olu Stevens Accused Of Judicial Misconduct," April 5, 2016
- ↑ New Jersey Herald, "Black judge drops suit stemming from racially charged feud," August 4, 2016
- ↑ WDRB.com, "State officials suspend Louisville Judge Olu Stevens for 90 days without pay," August 8, 2016
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 The Courier-Journal, "Judge slams victims for tot's 'black men' fear," April 15, 2015
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 WTSP, "Judge rebukes victims in court, stirs racist backlash," April 20, 2015
- ↑ Facebook, accessed December 3, 2015
- ↑ Courier-Journal, "Judge Olu Stevens' wife: 'It is about equality,' November 22, 2015
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Kentucky, Western District of Kentucky • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Kentucky, Western District of Kentucky
State courts:
Kentucky Supreme Court • Kentucky Court of Appeals • Kentucky Circuit Courts • Kentucky District Courts • Kentucky Family Court
State resources:
Courts in Kentucky • Kentucky judicial elections • Judicial selection in Kentucky
