Georgia Judge Avoids Removal Over Ethical Concerns, For Now

A Georgia Court of Appeals judge won’t yet be removed from office, despite a recommendation for such a sanction, the state’s top court ruled Wednesday.

The Judicial Qualifications Commission Hearing Panel recommended the removal of Judge Christian Coomer earlier this year, arguing that Coomer broke numerous rules, including several from before his time as a judicial appointee. Coomer allegedly mistreated clients as an attorney and wrongly took from his campaign account for personal expenses.

That panel made two errors that made rendering a final decision impossible, according to the Georgia Supreme Court.

First, the court held that the panel wrongly ...