Title: In Re Garrett
Citation: 613 So. 2d 463
Docket Number: 80424
State: Florida
Issuer: Florida Supreme Court
Date: February 4, 1993

613 So. 2d 463 (1993)
In re Inquiry Concerning a Judge re Eugene S. GARRETT, No. 92-208.
No. 80424.

Supreme Court of Florida.
February 4, 1993.
Rehearing Denied March 5, 1993.
J. Klein Wigginton, Chairman, and Roy T. Rhodes, General Counsel, Florida Judicial Qualifications Com'n, Tallahassee, and Lauri Waldman Ross, Sp. Counsel of Maland &amp; Ross, Miami, on behalf of Florida Judicial Qualifications Com'n, for petitioner.
Eugene S. Garrett, pro se.
PER CURIAM.
The Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC) has filed with this Court a recommendation that Eugene S. Garrett be removed from his position as district court judge for the Fourth District Court of Appeal. We have jurisdiction under article V, section 12(f) of the Florida Constitution.
In support of its recommendation, the JQC made the following findings of fact pertinent to the incident which precipitated this proceeding:
In his response to this Court's order to show cause, Judge Garrett does not deny the facts surrounding the theft. He contends that he shoplifted because he was suffering from severe depression. He argues that the JQC's recommendation is against the manifest weight of the evidence.[1]
In support of his position, he points to the testimony of Dr. George Kubski, the psychiatrist with whom he consulted after the theft occurred. Dr. Kubski testified that Judge Garrett had a history of being a workaholic and had a low sense of self esteem. He said that the judge reported that he had become more irritable and that he had some difficulty with sleeping. The judge was concerned over the scholastic difficulties of his two children and was preoccupied with the fact that May was the forty-first anniversary of his father's death. Dr. Kubski attributed the theft to poor judgment secondary to major depression. In Dr. Kubski's opinion, with two or three more months of psychotherapy and treatment with the antidepressant drug Zoloft, Judge Garrett's aberrant conduct would be very unlikely to recur. However, in its findings the Commission addressed the effect of Dr. Kubski's testimony in the following manner:
We cannot fault the Commission for not giving greater weight to Dr. Kubski's testimony. Judge Garrett admitted that he knew what he was doing when he stole the VCR Plus device and that he took it because he wanted it. Judge Garrett's depressed state of mind may have contributed to his conduct, but there can be no doubt that he knowingly committed petit theft. The JQC's findings are supported by clear and convincing evidence.
Judge Garrett also argues that he should not be removed from office in light of his unblemished career of public service. He asserts that his conduct at the Target Store was a one-time episode which would never be repeated. He suggests that his case is akin to In re Norris, 581 So. 2d 578 (Fla. 1991). In that case, Judge Norris became despondent over personal problems with his two adult children and began drinking heavily for three days. During this time he engaged in a number of irrational acts, including driving while intoxicated, discharging a firearm inside his house, and ultimately attempting to commit suicide. Id. When these incidents came to light, he submitted himself to a substance abuse clinic and reconciled with his children. Id. at 579. His psychiatrist testified that Judge Norris was being effectively treated and that there was no evidence of his suffering from a disability which would interfere with his ability to carry out the duties *465 of his office. Id. Approving a JQC recommendation for a public reprimand, we emphasized that Judge Norris's conduct was an aberration unrelated to his work which was caused largely by an untreated disease that was now under control. Id. at 580.
While certain aspects of Judge Garrett's case are similar to those of Judge Norris's, there are also some differences. Most significant is the fact that Judge Garrett knowingly committed a crime of moral turpitude, whereas Judge Norris's honesty and integrity were never questioned. Further, the JQC, which had the benefit of hearing the testimony in the two cases, accepted the opinion of Judge Norris's psychiatrist but discounted much of the opinion of Judge Garrett's psychiatrist. In some respects, Judge Garrett's case more nearly relates to that of In re Lamotte, 341 So. 2d 513, 518 (Fla. 1977), in which we approved the removal of a judge, who had an otherwise distinguished career, because he had intentionally used a state credit card for personal expenses.
We are not unmindful of Judge Garrett's meritorious service to the State of Florida both as a state attorney and as a judge. However, it is essential to our system of justice that the public have absolute confidence in the integrity of the judiciary. We believe it would be impossible for the public to repose this confidence in a judge who has knowingly stolen property from another. Thus, with a tinge of sadness but with firm conviction, we agree with the JQC when it said:
Accordingly, we direct that Eugene S. Garrett be removed as a judge of the Fourth District Court of Appeal effective upon this opinion becoming final.
It is so ordered.
BARKETT, C.J., and OVERTON, McDONALD, SHAW, GRIMES, KOGAN and HARDING, JJ., concur.
[1]  He also argues that he did not receive a fair trial and that he was denied due process. These claims have no merit and need not be discussed.