Chenango County town judge accused of misconduct by state commission

A town judge in Chenango County is accused of misconduct, including failure to properly inform defendants of the charges against them and holding positions incompatible with judicial office, over the course of two years.

The New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct announced Monday an agreement to recommend a censure for Guilford Town Judge Joan Kline. According to the commission, Kline, who is not an attorney, made "significant procedural errors" on fundamental matters.

Kline agreed to the censure, according to the state commission, whose members made the following determinations:

Kline failed to properly inform two defendants of their right to counsel and she denied another defendant's request to adjourn court proceedings so she could meet with her lawyer.

Kline failed to properly inform a defendant of the charges and she did not provide the defendant a copy of the charges, as required by law. Then, she asked questions that conveyed "an appearance of prejudgment and elicited incriminatory responses."

The judge is alleged to have made "injudicious comments" conveying an appearance that she had prejudged legal matters or would decide future cases against certain defendants not on the merits, but on the basis of her annoyance with them.

Kline disposed of court records before the mandatory retention period had ended.

Kline held two positions that were incompatible with judicial office when serving simultaneously as both court clerk and acting village judge for Oxford Village Court and as a member of the local fire police squad.

A judge may accept the commission's determination or request a review by the state's Court of Appeals within 30 days of receipt.

"It is a judge’s duty to insure that fundamental safeguards are met, such as advising litigants of the right to counsel. A judge must also insure that standards of fairness are upheld, such as deciding every case on the merits," Commission Administrator Robert H. Tembeckjian said Monday. "Judge Kline failed to meet these and other ethical mandates, but to her credit she admitted it and has taken steps to improve."

Under the law, if a judge does not seek a review by the higher court, the commission will issue a censure in accordance with its determination.

The initial complaint was made July 11, and it contained seven charges against the judge. An agreement was reached in October and the state commission's determination was received by Kline on Jan. 2, the agency said Monday.

Kline has served as a judge in Guilford Town Court since 2008. Her current term expires Dec. 31, 2021.

Before that, she was acting judge in Oxford village court from March 2013 through July 2016. From May 16, 2017 until Dec. 31, 2017, she was temporarily judge in the town and village of Oxford courts.

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