Former Circuit Judge Herman Thomas
Posted on 10/05/2009 6:02:06 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
He was once a revered judge, an African-American Democrat repeatedly elected in an Alabama county that was predominantly white and Republican.
But then came the scandal - and Herman Thomas' world turned upside down.
Thomas, former Alabama Circuit Court judge, stands accused of sodomy, kidnapping, sex abuse, extortion, assault and ethics violations, AOL News reports. The trial starts on Monday.
The first charges against Thomas surfaced in 2001 when an inmate claimed that Thomas offered to help with the case in return for sex. Those charges were dismissed. But that wasn't nearly the end of it.
Inmates then began claiming that Thomas forced them to strip down to their underwear and then spanked them. Others claimed he forced them to perform sex acts.
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
Former Circuit Judge Herman Thomas
I don’t understand, and I’m glad.
Unless they have they Judge on video tape or “DNA on the dress” quality physical evidence I would not believe the inmates.
OH...I thought it was HELEN Thomas...
gives new meaning to the term “big government”.
Sounds like a great appointment for another ‘czar’ to me. /s
Lets wait for the formal proceedings and see what that brings out. Nothing would surprise me.
The article seems to carefully avoid mentioning the gender of the inmates accusing him. The use of gender neutral pronouns seems forced and awkward. I could be wrong but I suspect it’s meaningful.
So that no one has visions of a “Girls in Prison” film, these were male inmates the judge was screwing.
black + democrat = not guilty
Looking at his mugshot, my gut instinct says “guilty”. And it’s hard to imagine under what circumstances a judge would ever be alone with an inmate, or even with an inmate in the presence of other court or prison officials without the inmate’s lawyer present. And fifteen is a LOT of inmates to get together on this story, with nobody breaking ranks. If there’s any solid evidence that this judge was in places he wasn’t supposed to be that would have given him access to these inmates, and the fifteen can each keep their own stories straight, I expect he’s guilty and will be found guilty. And I don’t see ANY way this could have happened without the complicity of other court or prison officials, so if the judge is guilty, there are likely to be other people getting charged too.
NO NO NO!!!
Don’t say that word here...
I suspect he's certainly guilty of multiple grooming and fashion felonies....
A former judge is.....charged with sexually abusing male inmates in exchange for leniency.
"...insists he is innocent and claims he was trying to mentor the inmates."
Where have I heard that before?
Isn't it interesting to note what the US source doesn't think is worth reporting:
Noting that each of the alleged victims is black, Patterson says jail checkout records back up inmates' claims about trips to Thomas' private office, and other inmates spotted marks after paddlings.
There also is other evidence, according to court records, including one inmate's seminal fluid on the office carpet.
The inmates also were able to describe in detail Thomas' unmarked windowless office.
See the link in #11 or the summary in #16. Guilty.
Where’s his earring?
“The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, a leading civil rights group, has defended Thomas and claims race is behind his prosecution.”
* * * * *
Pathetic. The degree of moral bankruptcy running rampant in our society makes our plunge into third world status more inevitable and more difficult to stop.
Yep, guilty. Now when are the trials of the prison officials who were “checking out” these prisoners for trips to the judge’s office? This perp did not act alone.
Yes, I wonder why the NAACP doesn’t seem very concerned for the 15 black, male inmates that claim they were abused and sodomized by this former judge?
LOL! You've sure got that right. ; - )
Thomas (President Of The Mobile Co. School Board) Among Those Indicted By Grand Jury
Thomas was indicted for leaving the scene of an accident with injuries and driving under the influence of alcohol.
The indictments stemmed from an incident during Mardi Gras earlier this year in which Thomas allegedly drove his vehicle over the foot of a 8-year-old paradegoer, then left the scene.
Earlier this week, Thomas, 37, was found guilty in Mobile Municipal Court of another case alleging he left the scene of an accident last summer.
[snip]
Later:
Thomas was fired from the schoolboard for wasting $9,000.00 of school money on Mardi Gras 'throws.'
I hear-by challenge EVERY FREEPER who has not made a donation to Free Republic to make a donation of just $10 and see what happens to the Freep-A-Thon!
I would think that every Freeper could donate at least $10 to help keep FR up and running! :)
In this case the NAACP support for the defendant seems to be a knee-jerk reaction and operating on a purely political - “unjust” - principle of simply defending the public image of “Black officials”, lest the chattering classes think a “Black official” can be as bad as anyone else.
I hope enough Blacks who are more local to the case simply diminish their respect for the NAACP, for it’s knee-jerk reaction in support of the defendant. They could have gotten more respect from everyone by taking no position on the case and publicly offering to let the trial speak for itself.
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