Opinion ID: 7347067
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Count 1(D): Gonzales

Text: Gina Gonzales became Judge Stanford’s clerk in 1994. She considers the judge and his wife as friends and knows their children and their son-in-law. She has attended church teas with the judge’s wife and staff holiday lunches at the judge’s home. In May 2006, Gonzales was cited for failure to stop at a stop sign. She was not eligible for traffic school because of a prior ticket. Gonzales was upset about the ticket because she believed she had stopped and because of the cost of the ticket. When she discussed the matter with Judge Stanford, he offered to suspend her fine if she was willing to plead guilty. Judge Stanford testified that he made the offer because he thought it would be awkward for Gonzales to go downstairs to traffic court, that she might need time off to go down there, and that “it would be easier for me to do it for her.” The courtesy notice, sent in June, listed the total bail of $141. In August, Judge Stanford directed that a guilty plea be entered and all fines and fees suspended. Gonzales asked Jennifer Londo, a fill-in clerk, to enter the disposition because clerks are not permitted to enter minutes in their own case. Londo indicated that she did not interact with Judge Stanford about the matter but was given something in writing indicating the disposition to enter. Judge Stanford testified that he “must have” talked to Londo, or that he was “sure he would have” but he had no specific recollection of the conversation. The masters found there was no conversation between Judge Stanford and Londo. We concur. Londo thought it would be “weird” to enter the matter as chambers work, so she entered it into the minutes as a “Hearing Held for Arraignment” and indicated that Gonzales had appeared and waived her rights. In fact, the judge never took the bench in this matter and there was no appearance or hearing.