Report says Tulare County judge violated judicial ethics

Tulare County Superior Court Judge Valeriano Saucedo violated judicial ethics by ensnaring his court clerk into a closer personal relationship with him, a three-judge panel said Wednesday in a report.

The report was filed with the Commission on Judicial Performance, which has the authority to discipline judges.

Saucedo could be removed from office or face a less severe punishment.

“Viewing the entire course of events, we determine Judge Saucedo brought the judicial office into disrepute by acting in a manner that an objective observer would find harmful to the public esteem for the judicial office, thus engaging in prejudicial misconduct,” the report states.

The commission has yet to set a date for oral arguments, but that’s expected now that the three-judge panel has issued its findings.

The scandal began in September 2013 when an unsigned, sexually explicit letter arrived at Saucedo’s home accusing his court clerk of having an affair with a bailiff.

Saucedo met privately with the clerk and offered to help her.

The three-judge panel said there’s “clear and convincing evidence” that Saucedo wrote the unsigned letter and mailed it to himself. He did it to get closer to the clerk, then put “undue pressure” on her to maintain a “special friend” relationship, they said.

During the next two months, Saucedo sent her about 445 text messages, gave her about $26,000 in gifts, including a BMW car and Disneyland trip for her family, and provided legal advice to her son, the report says.

Saucedo was not truthful during the investigation and when he testified at a hearing in Fresno in April, and has continued to blame the clerk, the report states.

But no one has claimed any impact on the cases he judged, the report said.

“He has a well deserved reputation as a hard-working and compassionate judge who has devoted many hours to giving back to the community,” the report says. “Before the current allegations, Judge Saucedo had a strong and unblemished record of service.”

This story was originally published July 8, 2015 at 6:21 PM with the headline "Report says Tulare County judge violated judicial ethics."