Today, Governor Roy Cooper issued the following statement in response to a judge reinstating North Carolina’s 20-week abortion ban:
“Although I disagree with this ruling, the vast majority of patients will still be able to access reproductive health care in North Carolina, and I remain committed to protecting it.
“The significant problem with this ruling is that it will criminalize important health care that’s needed in certain extraordinary circumstances. Abortion past 20 weeks in pregnancy is exceptionally rare and happens because of a devastating health emergency or diagnosis. Denying women necessary medical care in extreme and threatening situations, even if rare, is fundamentally wrong, and we cannot let politicians mislead people about the real world implications of this harmful law.”
Yesterday the N.C. Supreme Court censured former District Court Judge Randy Pool for violations of the North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct and “for conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice that brings the judicial office into disrepute.” A censure is a formal statement of severe disapproval or public condemnation and resulted from Pool’s repeated acts 0f sexual misconduct. Pool destroyed evidence in an attempt to conceal his actions. The State Supreme Court document also cites Pool’s diagnosis of early stage dementia, which sometimes leads to “a lack of control of sexual impulses” as a factor. Frontotemporal Dementia is also recognized as a progressive and terminal illness with a life expectancy of
6–8 years after symptoms manifest.
In August 2019, the Commission first filed a statement of charges against Pool. Pool unexpectedly retired on Nov. 8, 2019 without giving any reasons. In March 2020, new allegations were filed against Pool.
The North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission recommended this issue to be brought before the state Supreme Court based on the following violations:
Engaging in sexual misconduct while serving as and exploiting his position as chief judge of his judicial district through a pattern of predatory sexual advances towards numerous women in his community, many of whom were involved in matters pending in the district where respondent served as chief judge
Demonstrating a pattern of failing to diligently discharge his judicial duties for the period from at least November 2016 until his retirement in November 2019
Misusing the prestige of his judicial office to solicit assistance from local lw enforcement relating to an attempted extortion
Making material misrepresentations to law enforcement agents during the investigation of an attempt to extort money from him
Making material misrepresentations to the Commission during an investigation
Sending inappropriate electronic communications and exchange of nude photographs resulted in an extortion attempt by one woman, which led to an investigation by law enforcement agencies.
Jennifer Tierce, one of Pool’s victims, was charged with one count of felony extortion in the fall of 2019. Tierce allegedly threatened to send copies of sexually explicit texts and photographs from conversations between Pool and herself if Pool did not pay her $5,000. District Attorney Ted Bell brought the charges against Tierce. That case is ongoing.
Pool’s inappropriate use of social media
“Although some messages have been deleted, a review of Respondent’s existing Facebook messages during the period from November 2018 to May 2019 shows that Respondent, who is married, knowingly and willfully initiated and engaged in conversations with at least 35 different women that ranged from inappropriate and flirtatious to sexually explicit,” reads the censure order. “In some cases, Respondent and the female also had telephone conversations, exchanged texts and had personal meetings (including in some cases sexual encounters). Respondent knowingly and willfully engaged in FB conversations of a sexual nature with 12 women during the period from at least November 2018 through July 2019…”
The order also states that he “also made either inappropriate or flirtatious comments through FB messages to women who were required to appear or work in Respondent’s court in their professional capacities.”
It goes on to state that from November 2018 to May 2019 Pool engaged in extensive Facebook activity, including posts, comments and private messages, while he was reported as being in court. His Facebook records also established that he “routinely sought to arrange personal meetings with women he contacted on FB either during breaks and recesses from court, before court convened or immediately after court adjourned.”
“Court personnel assigned in (Pool’s) courtroom in McDowell County regularly observed that Respondent was frequently on his cell phone while on the bench and would often ‘disappear’ during recesses and lunch breaks, and that Respondent would often recuse in cases where the stated reason appeared to be very tenuous, and at other times would continue cases at such a high rate that it would make their jobs more difficult.”
From November 2018 through May 2019, Pool communicated, via Facebook, through inappropriate messages with at least 16 additional women, often seeking photographs of them or sharing photographs of himself. In addition, respondent had ex parte discussions through Facebook regarding pending proceedings in his district.
The order says:
Respondent’s FB records also establish that Respondent routinely sought to arrange personal meetings with women he contacted on FB either during breaks and recesses from court, before court convened or immediately after court adjourned. Court personnel assigned in Respondent’s courtroom in McDowell County regularly observed that Respondent was frequently on his cell phone while on the bench and would often “disappear” during recesses and lunch breaks, and that Respondent would often recuse in cases where the stated reason appeared to be very tenuous, and at other times would continue cases at such a high rate that it would make their jobs more difficult.
The censure order states that Pool “had enjoyed a long and distinguished career as a judge of his district for almost twenty years.”
“As Chief District Court Judge, Respondent made a number of significant contributions to the administration of justice during his 13 years in that position,” the order states. “Upon being named Chief Judge, Respondent immediately instituted a Continuance Policy for his district that all judges followed and successfully eliminated significant back log in his district. Respondent also created a new Truancy Court for McDowell and Rutherford County at least twelve years ago where he and his colleagues volunteered their time after court to meet with parents, grandparents and students to emphasize and encourage students to stay in school, be present each day, and to work hard to get a good education. Respondent has also actively been engaged in his community. . . “
Additionally, the order states that Pool “has also undertaken significant efforts to determine the cause of his sexual misconduct and to address the problems in his personal life.”
His primary care physician conducted a physical examination in early October 2020 and ordered an MRI, which showed mild atrophy or shrinkage of the front and the left temporal lobes of his brain. An evaluation by a physician resulted in a diagnosis of early stage frontotemporal dementia, a disease which can manifest itself through a lack of control of sexual impulses, according to the censure order.
“Respondent agrees that based upon the nature of his misconduct and his recent diagnosis of early signs of dementia, he will not seek a commission as an emergency judge or a retired recall judge, nor will he attend future judicial conferences or continuing judicial education (CJE) programs offered to judges of the State of North Carolina,” reads the order.
“In addition, because respondent is no longer a sitting judge and has agreed not to serve as such, while taking into account respondent’s eighteen years of distinguished service as a judge and respondent’s expression of remorse, we agree that censure is appropriate,” reads the order.
The decision for censure was stated in the order as follows:
The undisputed facts at issue in this matter establish that Respondent’s conduct involved moral turpitude and dishonesty with the SBI and the Commission during their investigations in an effort to prevent the discovery of the
full extent of his sexual misconduct. As such, and despite Respondent’s recent diagnosis of the early stages of frontotemporal dementia on the eve of his disciplinary hearing (a fact he noted during his clinical evaluation on
October 20, 2020), the Commission does not hesitate to conclude that Respondent’s conduct between 2017 and 2019 was willful and renders him unfit to serve as a judge of the State of North Carolina and that Respondent fully
understood that his conduct would justify disciplinary action. By Respondent’s own admission to the SBI on May 16, 2019, his conduct with respect to Ms. [T.] alone was “terrible” and could result in disciplinary action by the
Commission to include a recommendation of removal from office and loss of his pension and that his preference was that the Commission would not learn of his misconduct. . . .
The Commission thus concludes that Respondent also engaged in willful misconduct in office.
(Second alteration in original).
¶ 7 In addition to these conclusions of law, the Commission also considered the fact that respondent “is no longer a sitting judge of the State of North Carolina and has agreed that he will never serve in such capacity again,” that he “had served for approximately 18 years as a judge, and for over a decade as chief judge of District 29A, without any disciplinary matters before the Commission,” that he “had contributed to improvements to the administration of justice in his district,” and thathe is in “the early stages of frontotemporal dementia.” Based on the conclusions of law and these mitigating factors, the Commission recommended that respondent be censured.
¶ 8 I
Pool’s censure, however, will not affect his retirement pension. The case was last heard on Nov. 13, 2020 with an order issued on Dec. 18, 2020.
Chief Deputy Warren Sprouse fired Deputy Jamie Dunn this week after an incident at the jail.
Dunn allegedly hit a handcuffed inmate, arrested in a domestic violence call and known to him from his substitute teacher days, after the inmate called his wife, a CHASE teacher, an obscene name and made a violent sexual threat towards Dunn’s daughter. The suspect supposedly was treated for a broken jaw.
The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) upon reviewing the video obtained from the jail issued a warrant for Dunn for assault. Upon advice from legal counsel, Dunn turned himself in to Polk County, N.C. Sheriff’s Department.
While Dunn does not deny an incident that he described as happening during a blackout, he was never given the opportunity to tell his side of the story before the county terminated his employment.
The originating domestic violence call that Saturday night came in at approximately 8:39 p.m. Dunn was on duty that night despite the fact that his mother had died unexpectedly the day before. Dunn felt obligated to show up for work since the night patrol was frequently understaffed. Sheriff Chris Francis had previously told him he was needed on patrol. Yet, the grief of his mom’s passing weighed heavy on his mind.
At the scene of the alleged domestic violence, Dunn recognized the young woman who answered the door from a call the month before. Then she had been obviously beaten up including swollen eyes, but no charges had been made.
According to Dunn, this time, while talking with the young woman outside, the male occupant of the house came out and shouted “You done talked enough,” and proceeded to grab her arm and pull her back into the house.
Witnessing this physical assault, Dunn detained the man and put him in handcuffs into the back seat of the patrol car. There the suspect wriggled his handcuffs in front of him and began kicking the back window with great force.
Upon arrival at the jail, the suspect began threatening and intimidating others as well.
Dunn was aware of the county’s various assistance programs and had spoken to his supervisor about getting grief assistance. He had a zoom consultation with a psychiatrist on Monday and a follow-up visit with his physician who signed Dunn’s papers for a Family Medical Leave. Dunn intended to turn those papers in when his supervisor met with him. Instead, he was terminated.
Dunn has over 20+ years experience in law enforcement and has served in various capacities such as the Narcotics Unit, Detective, Patrol, and the Interdiction Team.