SC judge likely to lose $191K job over political Facebook posts
A veteran state judge is likely to lose his $191,954-a-year job over concerns about his Facebook posts that appeared to support Republican President Donald Trump and denounced the “liberal left,” “illegal immigrants” and the “left wing main stream media.”
But Circuit Court Judge Thomas Russo, 64, of Florence, is fighting to keep his seat, even as the legislative panel that screens judges has decided he is no longer a candidate in next year’s judicial election.
That panel, the 10-member Judicial Merit Selection Commission, questioned Russo about the 2016 Facebook posts during a closed-door hearing on Nov. 20 and voiced concerns about his ability to serve as an impartial judge, The State has learned from numerous sources.
During that secret meeting, the screening panel discussed a “Letter of Caution” that the S.C. Commission on Judicial Conduct issued to Russo in 2018, officially warning him that his social media posts “could be viewed as expressions of bias or prejudice casting reasonable doubt on your ability to act impartially as a judge.”
A “Letter of Caution” is a confidential reproach issued by the Commission on Judicial Conduct, a group of state judges that oversees disciplinary issues for other judges.
At some point during the Nov. 20 closed hearing, Russo — who has been a judge since 2005 — handwrote a one-sentence letter withdrawing his candidacy.
That came after he had been told the screening panel likely would not find him qualified for the job — a decision that would disqualify him from election by the General Assembly, sources told The State.
“I Thomas Russo have decided to withdraw my candidacy for the Circuit Court bench At-Large Seat 12,” Russo jotted down onto notebook paper.
But hours later, he wrote the Judicial Merit Selection Commission another letter attempting to retract the withdrawal and stay in the race. He said the initial letter “was submitted under intense pressure and duress with me given little to no time to process what had just occurred during the executive session.”
Russo continued, “Please accept this letter as my formal withdrawal of that hand-written document and that I wish to proceed with my candidacy and go forward with my right to a public hearing.”
A secret hearing
The Commission released both letters and other documents to The State newspaper Wednesday afternoon in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, and after reporters from The State spent several days waiting outside Commission hearings to ask members about Russo’s status.
In any case, the screening panel no longer considers Russo a candidate, and his seat will become vacant when his six-year term officially ends June 30, according to the panel’s vice chairman, state Sen. Luke Rankin, R-Horry.
Rankin declined further comment on the case. So did Russo.
Russo was running unopposed and was regarded a shoo-in for re-election before his candidacy unraveled last month.
Incumbent judges are nearly always re-elected. It is highly unusual for an incumbent judge’s candidacy to be undone by the Commission, and virtually unheard of for the Commission’s decision to be contested after the fact.
Russo had a rocky public hearing before the Commission on Nov. 18. He was questioned about accusations he berated people in court and discriminated against women lawyers, according to the Charleston Post and Courier, which first reported two weeks ago that Russo had withdrawn, noting the panel’s public questions about his demeanor toward women. Details of Russo’s Facebook posts and his efforts to retract his withdrawal have not been previously reported.
But the real fireworks occurred two days later behind closed doors. Russo was called back before the Commission for a rare second hearing on the afternoon of Nov. 20.
Without explanation, the Commission went into executive session with Russo under oath and reporters were made to leave the room. Nearly 90 minutes later, when reporters were allowed to re-enter, Russo was gone — having exited out of a backdoor in secret.
After that hearing, Commission members refused to answer questions from The State about why Russo was questioned or the status of his candidacy.
Controversial posts
Russo’s Facebook posts were not publicly known, yet at the time they were the focus of the closed-door hearing, sources have since told The State.
In those 2016 posts, a few of which were obtained by The State, Russo defended Trump’s stances on “illegal immigrants” and criticized “the liberal left and main stream media.”
Trump, Russo wrote on Facebook: “is being ripped to shreds for having the exact same position as Bill Clinton expressed regarding his position on immigration. The hypocrisy and the favoritism that the left wing main stream media uses to cover President-elect Trump is undeniable except by those who ARE the left wing liberals.”
According to the S.C. Canon on Judicial Ethics, a judge must refrain from activities that “cast reasonable doubt on the judge’s capacity to act impartially as a judge.” Another rule is that judges “shall perform the duties of judicial office impartially and diligently” and ”not be swayed by partisan interests.”
Russo tried to explain the posts in a March 2018 letter, two weeks before the Commission on Judicial Conduct issued him an advisory warning.
Russo said he was ignorant that his Facebook profile was open to the public and could reflect poorly on his decision-making as a judge. He did not deny making the posts but said he did not let his political views influence his work.
“Obviously, we all have opinions and positions as they relate to our political and religious beliefs and that should not come as a surprise to anyone,” Russo wrote. “Judges are not robots or machines who have no independent thoughts or ideas about the issues of the day. ... However, I understand that we need to be very careful that we do not allow those personal persuasions to interfere with our ability to carry out our tasks as fair and impartial arbiters or in any way have those things inhibit our judgment in impartially applying the law in our work.”
Russo said he had removed all references to his job from his Facebook page and would refrain from any future political or religious postings. His daughter has since helped him make sure his Facebook page is kept open only to family and friends, he said.
‘Completely devastated’
Last month, Russo’s attorney, Joe McCulloch, asked the Commission for a full hearing on his request to rescind the withdrawal letter and continue his candidacy.
In his letter, dated Nov. 22, McCulloch argued that Russo was required to make a crucial decision “in just a few minutes.”
McCulloch wrote that Russo was put in a “difficult decision” by “media speculation” that his withdrawal stemmed from questioning about his temperament and alleged sexism.
“The focus and handling of the Facebook posts behind closed doors permit media speculation and continuing damage to his otherwise excellent reputation and performance on the bench,” McCulloch wrote.
As a remedy, McCulloch proposed that the Commission hold another hearing, open to the public and with all the facts about the letter of caution and Facebook postings be made public.
“This at least affords ... transparency and provides the public a complete review of the process and full understanding of the issues that have resulted in the Commission’s current stance,” McCulloch wrote.
But the Commission does not plan to hold another hearing for Russo, Rankin made clear in a Wednesday afternoon interview with The State.
Rankin said Russo’s seat would become vacant at the end of June and that the Commission could screen candidates again next fall.
Russo could re-apply for the job, he said.
In his letter explaining his posts, Russo said he never meant to violate the Code of Judicial Conduct.
”I am completely devastated that I may have done anything that would bring into question my integrity or the integrity of the Court,” he wrote. “It is such an honor and privilege to serve our State on the Circuit Bench and is something I have embraced with great pride.”
This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 6:37 PM.
