Opinion ID: 1760996
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Findings of the Master and the Commission

Text: As heretofore indicated, after 29 days of hearings which elicited 4467 pages of evidence and hundreds of documentary exhibits, the Master filed his findings with the Commission on January 13, 1976. Since the Commission substantially agreed with the Master's findings of misconduct, we shall summarize the findings from the Master's Report, with notations of any differences in our own findings: I. That Judge Carrillo conspired with Ramiro Carrillo, his brother and county commissioner, to obtain goods and merchandise from the Cash Store in an amount of $300.00 per month from at least July 1972 through December 1974. By a preponderance of the evidence it was shown that this resulted from a scheme by which a monthly payment of $700 to $800 of Duval County welfare funds was made to the Cash Store for fictitious welfare recipients, with no more than $100.00 per month being given out in welfare groceries. A monthly sum of $300.00 from each monthly Duval County Welfare payment was applied to Judge Carrillo's account for a total during the period of approximately $9000.00. II. That Judge Carrillo was deeply involved in transactions concerning property in litigation in his court and with one of the litigants, being charged, however, only with failure to voluntarily recuse or disqualify himself from the case. The Master found that Judge Carrillo signed only agreed orders prior to a hearing by another judge which resulted in a judgment of disqualification. The Judicial Qualifications Commission made no finding upon this charge. We find that the preponderance of the evidence shows that Judge Carrillo was so involved with the litigant and the property in litigation that he should have recused himself voluntarily. Except for the stronger action of removal on other charges, we would censure Judge Carrillo for failing to recuse himself in the case. III. That Roberto Elizondo was unlawfully paid $225.00 per month from the Duval County Road and Bridge Fund while he attended Court Reporting School from January 1, 1972 through September of 1973, with the knowledge and assistance of Judge Carrillo. Neither the Master, nor the Commission, nor do we find from a preponderance of the evidence that these payments were the result of a conspiracy between Judge Carrillo and his brother, Ramiro Carrillo, to steal such sums from Duval County as charged in the First Amended Notice of Formal Proceedings. IV, V AND V-A. That Judge Carrillo periodically used the services of employees and equipment of Duval County on his own ranch or in furtherance of his own personal business interests. VI. That in November, 1973 Judge Carrillo used equipment of the Duval County Conservation and Reclamation District to construct the foundation of a building owned by him. VII-X. Separate amounts in the sum of $1008.00, $1018.00, $1006.00 and $995.00, respectively, were appropriated by Judge Carrillo for his own use and benefit from Duval County with the intent permanently to deprive the county of such money. The findings on these charges were well documented and showed a scheme by which false bills or invoices were prepared showing that Farm and Ranch Supply sold goods and leased equipment to Benavides Implement and Hardware Company, which in turn billed Duval County for the goods, merchandise, services or equipment which, in fact, had not been provided. Duval County would then send checks to Benavides Implement and Hardware which, in turn, paid them over to various people and entities, including Judge Carrillo. XI. That Judge Carrillo wrongfully obtained the sum of $5625.00 from the Duval County Conservation and Reclamation District with the intent to permanently deprive the district of such money. The evidence here included a check from Benavides Implement and Hardware to Judge Carrillo, the source of which was traced to the district. XII. That Judge Carrillo, from December 14, 1972 until May 1974, unlawfully used Duval County funds in excess of $8000.00 with the intent permanently to deprive Duval County of said money. This was accomplished by Judge Carrillo's purchase of two bulldozers for his own use through a lease-purchase agreement in the name of Benavides Implement and Hardware. The equipment was financed through payment of Duval County funds to Benavides Implement and Hardware on fictitious invoices, and in turn Benavides made payments for Judge Carrillo's account on the sum owed by him to Plains Machinery Company, at least to the extent of $8000.00. This is not a criminal proceeding, since its function is not to punish but to maintain the high quality and integrity of the judiciary. Consequently the findings of the Master, the Commission, and of this Court need be established only by a preponderance of the evidence. In re Brown, 512 S.W.2d 317 (Tex.1974). Except as indicated above, we agree that a preponderance of the evidence established the acts of misconduct as found by the Master and the Judicial Qualifications Commission. We further find that the misconduct set forth in charges I and III through XII constitute willful conduct which cast public discredit upon the judiciary.