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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 27, 2005 Justice of the peace will quit; settlement totals $75,000 By SANNE SPECHT Mail Tribune Jackson County has agreed to pay Justice of the Peace Robert King $75,000 in exchange for his resignation, according to a tentative settlement reached Wednesday. The agreement calls for King’s resignation by Tuesday and prevents either side from suing the other, said County Counsel Mike Jewett. The settlement came on the second day of a hearing before the Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability to determine whether King should retain his seat and salary. Jewett said the agreement will be presented to Jackson County commissioners on Nov. 1, adding he expects they will sign off on the deal. "I think it’s a fair settlement," said Jewett following the hearing. "I think everyone here wishes the judge well. He’s been serving the public for a long time." King has been justice of the peace since 1979. Advertisement The settlement amount is equal to two years of the judge’s salary plus $5,000 to cover expenses, said King’s attorney, Michael Kellington. Outside Medford’s federal court building, King said he was both relieved and disappointed. He would have liked to have presented his full panel of witnesses, he said. But the ordeal has been "hard on my family and my wife," he added. King, 60, of Gold Hill, was cited for possessing one-eighth of an ounce of marijuana in June 2004. He pleaded guilty to the non-criminal charge and successfully completed a diversion program. Fallout from King’s marijuana citation, combined with a new Southern Justice Court created in Central Point by the county, resulted in the eventual closure of King’s court in Gold Hill. Before Wednesday’s agreement, King could have collected his $36,000 annual salary plus benefits until his term expired in 2009. During the two-day fitness hearing, Special Council David Paradis presented witnesses alleging misconduct by King before the panel of three judges, three attorneys and one governor-appointed citizen. One of King’s former court clerks, Dawn Dell, testified she had confronted King for appearing intoxicated while on the bench. "I told him he couldn’t come to work drinking," she said. Now a clerk for the new justice court, Dell said she was upset to learn King had used marijuana. "I don’t think a judge who smokes marijuana should be a judge," she said. Dell, who said she does not drink alcohol, was challenged by Kellington on her ability to determine intoxication. King, a longtime diabetic, now has a medical marijuana card, said Kellington. Did that change Dell’s opinion? he asked. "Marijuana is not a medicine," Dell insisted. Kellington’s first witness for King’s defense was Anne Boydston. The former librarian testified she regularly sold King marijuana from her home for approximately two years. Boydston said she sold King his "usual" one-eighth ounce at the direction of JACNET officers about one month after they arrested her on May 13, 2004. "The police wanted me to sell him more (than the citation amount)," said Boydston. "I wouldn’t do that." Boydston is serving one year in house arrest for felony convictions of manufacture, delivery and possession of a controlled substance. She said she believes King was targeted by police because they immediately questioned her about the judge. Although she initially lied to police about King’s marijuana purchases, she was forced to admit he was a regular customer when King drove down her driveway during the bust. The settlement between the county and King was reached during a recess after Boydston’s testimony. The judiciary commission instructed King his fitness hearing was only suspended, not dismissed, until he tendered his resignation. Kellington expressed mixed feelings about the timing of the settlement. He said an Oregon State Police officer, a retired municipal judge and six other witnesses were prepared to testify on behalf of King’s character and judicial fitness. But it was more important to end the fight than continue the battle, Kellington said. "The nightmare’s over, Bob," Kellington said to King. "I want you to go home and rest." Reach reporter Sanne Specht at 776-4497 or e-mail Justice of the peace will quit; settlement totals $75,000 ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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