Alaska Prosecutor Claims Ex-Judge Leveraged Political Ties (1)

A senior federal prosecutor alleges that a federal judge in Alaska invoked his position and political connections as he sought nude photographs from her, according to newly released court filings.

The prosecutor, Karen Vandergaw, detailed her interactions with then-US District Judge Joshua Kindred, who resigned in July amid sexual misconduct findings, in a pair of statements that were filed publicly for the first time late Tuesday. Other court documents made public on Monday had referenced Vandergaw’s statements.

Vandergaw’s name is redacted in the filings, but the government previously confirmed her identity in separate litigation.

Kindred couldn’t be reached for comment and hasn’t publicly addressed the findings against him since his resignation. Vandergaw didn’t immediately return a request for comment.

In her first statement in February 2023, more than a year prior to Kindred’s resignation, Vandergaw said her relationship with the judge was solely professional. But in a second August statement, made after findings against Kindred were made public and he resigned from the bench, Vandergaw alleged that she was coerced into sending nude photographs to the judge. Both statements were made public for the first time as part of court filings released this week.

“At first, I declined, but I agreed the next day, feeling pressured to appease Judge Kindred given his inherent position of power and authority over me as a federal judge, his ability to influence decisions in the US Attorney’s Office, and his influence over my future,” Vandergaw said in the August statement.

Vandergaw said in the letter that Kindred told her he spoke regularly with the state’s US senators and influential attorneys in the state, and that at one point he had recommended her to Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) for a federal judgeship. Vandergaw had applied in April 2023 for an open seat on the Alaska federal trial court.

She said that they would often see each other at the gym in the federal building that housed the courthouse. Vandergaw said that one day Kindred told her she was on Murkowski’s list of potential candidates for the federal judgeship. She said that while he initially said that he wouldn’t ask for anything in return, he later messaged her and said she “should find a way to thank him,” according to the letter.

“He also implied that he had the power, ability, and willingness to ruin everything if he did not get what he wanted,” Vandergaw said in the letter. “I asked him what he wanted. He said he wanted more photos.”

In a brief interview Wednesday, Murkowski said the notion that Kindred held sway with her on judicial appointments was “bullshit.” She also said he never submitted any names to her for a judgeship, and that any such recommendations would have gone through the bar association regardless.

A spokesperson for Sullivan said the senator “never talked to Kindred about any nominee to the federal bench and has rarely talked to Kindred ever.”

“Senator Sullivan believes that Josh Kindred is a disgrace and should be disbarred,” the spokesperson said.

Conflict of Interest Cases

The filings were submitted in the case of a man originally convicted of cyberstalking in Kindred’s courtroom, one of dozens that came under scrutiny for possible conflicts of interest in the wake of the judge’s resignation and misconduct.

That defendant was granted a new trial, overseen by a visiting judge from the Oregon federal trial court, and convicted again last month. On Monday, the judge ordered a number of sealed documents in the case be released publicly, after finding Vandergaw’s privacy interests were “significantly outweighed” by the public’s need to learn more about potential conflicts.

Kindred resigned in July, days before the Ninth Circuit judicial council released its report finding the judge had sexually harassed a law clerk and had inappropriate relationships with female attorneys who appeared before him, including receiving nude photos from an unnamed senior prosecutor.

The newly unsealed documents paint a fuller picture of Vandergaw’s interactions with the judge

According to the August letter, whose recipient is also redacted, Vandergaw met Kindred in early February or March 2020, but began communicating more in late 2021 when she inquired about networking opportunities. She said Kindred started asking her for nude photos “as soon as he told me he had recommended me for a federal judgeship.”

The two exchanged nude photographs and sexually explicit messages through the encrypted messaging application Signal. Kindred also “made it a habit” of telling her how well-connected politically he was and “often spoke” of talking to Alaska’s senators, the letter said.

Vandergaw also said that she asked the judge whether she would be on his recusal list, meaning he wouldn’t hear cases in which she was involved, after she sent the first explicit photos. She said Kindred reacted angrily, according to the documents.

In early 2023, Vandergaw suggested moving their communications to a different encrypted messaging application, Telegram, and they “communicated less frequently after that.” She also stated the two did not have a physical relationship, according to the court documents.

The judiciary has referred Kindred to the House of Representatives for impeachment, citing his “reprehensible conduct.”

The case is USA v. Hernandez-Zamora, Alaska Dist. Ct., No. 3:21-cr-00062, unsealed documents 12/10/24

—With assistance from Tiana Headley