Dan Horn

The Cincinnati Enquirer

Martin%2C who led the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals for years has denied any wrongdoing

A judicial conduct committee found Martin%27s travel expenses from Jan. 1%2C 2008%2C and Aug. 2%2C 2012%2C should be investigated by the public integrity section of the Justice Department

Complaints against federal judges are rarely made public%2C and most do not result in disciplinary action

CINCINNATI — The former chief judge of Cincinnati's federal appeals court is under scrutiny for receiving almost $140,000 in travel expenses during four and a half years on the bench.

A judicial conduct committee has found that the expenses of Judge Boyce F. Martin, a Louisville judge who for years led the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, should be investigated by the public integrity section of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Martin appealed the recommendation, but the committee of judges who investigated the complaint against him ruled last week that the referral is appropriate.

Martin said Monday he did nothing wrong. Officials at the Department of Justice could not be reached for comment.

The case is significant because complaints against federal judges are rarely made public, and most do not result in disciplinary action. Referrals to the Department of Justice, which conducts criminal investigations, are rare.

"This is quite unusual," said Arthur Hellman, a University of Pittsburgh law professor who studies the nation's federal circuit courts. "I'm still trying to absorb that the federal judiciary has referred one of their own judges to the public integrity section. That is stunning."

Only U.S. Supreme Court justices are more powerful than federal appeals judges. Cases before the 6th Circuit include death penalty appeals, church and state disputes, white collar crimes, drug cases, the constitutionality of abortion laws and a range of others.

According to court records, the case began when the current chief judge, Alice Batchelder, complained about "questionable travel reimbursement requests" made by Martin. The reimbursements — made between Jan. 1, 2008, and Aug. 2, 2012 — totaled $138,500.

The records do not specify the nature of the travel or which parts of the total expenses were questioned. The expenses average about $2,500 a month.

Martin's spokeswoman, Claire Parker, said the amount in question was "a fraction" of the total expenses, but she said the judge has voluntarily repaid the total amount.

"Judge Martin contested some of the expenses and conceded mistakes with others," Parker said Monday.

She said the judge "looks forward to working with the Department of Justice to resolve this matter expeditiously."

Most 6th Circuit judges live in one of the four states covered by the 6th Circuit — Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee — and must travel regularly to Cincinnati for hearings. Martin is based in Louisville, about 100 miles from Cincinnati. Judges also may attend conferences or other business around the country.

Martin agreed to retire and repay $138,500

Court records indicate Martin told investigators he did nothing wrong and agreed to retire last August at least in part because of the investigation into his travel expenses.

He also agreed to repay the $138,500 in three installments. Court records indicate the third installment has not been paid, but Parker said the judge recently completed payments after learning his final check had not been received.

Martin's appeal was decided last week by the Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability of the Judicial Conference of the United States, which oversees the nation's federal courts.

The committee rejected Martin's request that his name not be made public, noting that he announced his retirement last May just two weeks before he was supposed to testify about his travel expenses.

"Judge Martin maintains that he took voluntary and complete corrective action in this matter, and that the complaint proceeding should have been concluded on that basis," the judicial conduct committee wrote.

But the committee didn't buy that argument, finding that disclosing Martin's name "is appropriate in this circumstance."

The judicial complaint investigation ended with Martin's retirement, but the case was referred to the Department of Justice anyway. Court records make no mention of the status of that investigation.

The dispute over Martin's travel is among the most serious involving 6th Circuit judges, but it's not the only one. Martin, a liberal appointed by President Jimmy Carter, sparred for years with his conservative colleagues over a number of cases, as well as the court's administration of those cases.

Martin and Batchelder butted heads several years ago after Batchelder led an internal review of a claim that Martin broke court rules by appointing himself to hear an affirmative action case.

Martin later argued that Batchelder should not hear a 2008 voter registration dispute in Cincinnati because her husband, Bill Batchelder, was a Republican member of Ohio's House of Representatives.

Martin was sworn in as chief judge in 1996.