A Pa. judge is on the defensive after becoming the subject of a racially-charged complaint alleging he referred to a black juror as “Aunt Jemima,” the stereotyped pancake syrup symbol.

UPDATE Feb. 28, 2020: Pa. judge who called black juror ‘Aunt Jemima’ made other racial comments, transcripts show

According to KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, the complaint centers on the comments of Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Mark Tranquilli.

As a result of the complaint, Tranquilli, who served as a long-time prosecutor before rising to the bench, has already been reassigned.

The alleged remarks by the judge reportedly came during closed-door meeting with a defense attorney and an assistant district attorney. KDKA reports Tranquilli was quoted as calling a black woman juror “Aunt Jemima” as well as musing about her having a drug-dealing “baby daddy” at home.

Details from KDKA:

In a written statement about the incident, Assistant DA Ted Dutkowski said he was so sickened by the remarks that he wished to leave the judge’s chambers and was moved to write a complaint detailing what was said.

The closed-door conference came at the conclusion of a drug trial two weeks ago in which Dutkowski said Tranquilli “was not happy” the jury rendered a ‘not guilty’ verdict.

During the session, Tranquilli questioned the assistant DA about why he had not moved to strike or block a black woman juror during jury selection weeks before.

“You weren’t out of strikes when you decided to put Aunt Jemima on the jury,” Tranquilli is alleged to say.

The document also alleges Tranquilli said of the woman who had her hair in a headdress, “As soon as she sat down, she crossed her arms and looked like this.”

Dutokwski said the judge then crossed his arms and scowled, then continued: “You know darn well that when she goes home to her baby daddy, he’s probably slinging heroin too.”

The DA’s office gave Dutkowski’s memorandum to President Judge Kim Berkley Clark, who issued an order temporarily re-assigning Tranquilli to summary appeals, where he will review magistrate cases ranging from traffic fines to truancy.

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