Judicial commission: Troy judge ’caused upheaval and turbulence’ in her court

By Kara Berg, Tribune Information Service

A Troy District Court docket decide has “brought about commotion and turbulence” by her conduct on and off the courtroom, the Michigan Judicial Tenure Fee advised the decide on the primary day of a misconduct listening to.

The Judicial Tenure Fee, which investigates all allegations of judicial misconduct in Michigan, filed a uncommon public criticism in opposition to 52-4 District Court docket Decide Kirsten Nielsen Hartig in June, alleging that she withheld the outcomes of her psychological well being investigation from the Judicial Tenure Fee for months. She can be accused of assaulting courtroom workers and wrongfully dismissing circumstances.

In the course of the first day of the listening to Monday in Detroit, JTC workers legal professional Molly Kettler mentioned Hartig had conflicts with all of her chief judges and three former and present courtroom directors, which has taken a toll on the courtroom’s functioning, Kettler mentioned. The listening to is predicted to final a month.

“When Decide Hartig would not get what she needs from the individuals within the courtroom, once they do not give in to her calls for … she goes on the assault in opposition to them, typically in extraordinarily disrespectful methods,” Kettler mentioned. “Decide Hartig’s poisonous conduct has disrupted the administration of the 52nd District Court docket time and time once more.”

However Hartig’s legal professional, Donald Campbell, mentioned the JTC has tried to place a foul spin on nearly all the pieces Hartig has performed and examined her conduct underneath a microscope — one thing few may survive with no taint.

“This unprecedented public criticism is designed to interrupt her, to humiliate her and so they had hoped she would resign,” Campbell mentioned throughout his opening assertion. “At the moment begins the listening to the place rumor collides with reality, the place myths are debunked by proof and greater than a decade of malicious and vengeful efforts by a couple of… are uncovered.”

Hartig was faraway from her legal circumstances on Could 27 following an administrative order from District Decide Travis Reed, chief decide of the 52nd District Court docket. Hartig presently handles normal civil, landlord-tenant and small claims circumstances.

Campbell mentioned when Hartig was first elected in 2011, her concepts for change weren’t welcome on the courthouse. She struggled to get solutions from the courtroom administrator, Campbell mentioned, and requested the chief decide to intervene. That led to the bailiff retaliating, Campbell mentioned.

Her issues elevated in 2018 when a brand new courtroom administrator was employed, who Campbell mentioned didn’t have the mandatory expertise to do her job. Tensions between the 2 flared, and the administrator complained that Hartig humiliated her in courtroom in 2018, Campbell mentioned.

“The JTC workers is ignoring any proof that favors Decide Hartig,” Campbell mentioned.

Though the JTC filed a second amended criticism in January, including details about psychological testing that allegedly confirmed Hartig has the potential for having “an emergent dementia-like syndrome,” Kettler didn’t point out this throughout her opening statements.

Nevertheless, she mentioned checks confirmed Hartig lacked the capabilities to carry out the features of her job, together with cognitive deficits that hindered her potential to be a decide and deal with individuals appropriately.

Hartig was ordered to bear a psychological analysis in April 2024 after refusing to take action voluntarily, Kettler mentioned. Nevertheless, Campbell mentioned this was not true, and Hartig underwent a psychological well being analysis in 2023, which discovered there was nothing mistaken with Hartig.

Kettler mentioned Hartig refused to provide the JTC the report of the 2024 checks, though Campbell mentioned she was not required to take action. Hartig despatched the JTC a letter from a health care provider in June 2024 saying the outcomes of the 2024 examine have been “ridiculous” and citing some findings. When the JTC lastly obtained Hartig’s report in December 2024, it was decided that it was unsafe for her to observe “because of disruptive conduct and persona problems,” Kettler mentioned.

“She merely determined that she had the proper to hide the report and proceed to preside as a decide as if she had by no means been discovered unsafe to observe,” Kettler mentioned.

However Campbell mentioned: “There isn’t any incapacity, by no means has been. It’s simply a part of a marketing campaign by disciplinary counsel in an try to embarrass my shopper.”

The 2024 report additionally discovered that Hartig had problem studying and remembering visible particulars, spontaneously recalling context-based visible particulars after a delay and retaining vital particulars with out forgetting or complicated the knowledge, Kettler mentioned.

“Her hostility has elevated as her cognitive expertise have declined,” Kettler mentioned. “She makes increasingly errors and has problem conserving monitor of particulars and acquiring vital details about circumstances.”

Hartig and Campbell filed a movement in September to dismiss the majority of the JTC’s criticism as a result of it was “legally poor,” they and Campbell wrote.

Hartig was first elected in 2010 and was re-elected in 2016 and 2022.

Decide Jennifer Mazzuchi, a retired decide from Marquette, is presiding over the misconduct listening to. After listening to the case, she is going to ship her findings to the Michigan Supreme Court docket, which is able to decide whether or not the case has benefit and decide self-discipline.

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