http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/050207dnmetjudgecomplaint.38a7084.html
The story, written by Debra Dennis of the Dallas Morning NEws, speaks for itself:
FORT WORTH – A Dallas attorney has filed a complaint against Tarrant County Judge R. Brent Keis, saying the judge told him that blacks are better suited for athletic endeavors because their ancestors survived the slave trade.
Nuru Witherspoon, who is black, said that Judge Keis made the comments as he appeared before him in court for the first time last month. Judge Keis said that Mr. Witherspoon misunderstood his comments.
"After introducing myself to Judge Keis, he told me he thought slavery and the Middle Passage made my people better athletes," Mr. Witherspoon said in a written complaint that he says he
filed with the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.
"Judge Keis further stated that we are bigger and stronger athletes because weak slaves were thrown overboard and never made it to the Americas," the complaint said.
Judge Keis, who handles civil cases, said he is not racist.
"I don't see the black and white," the judge said. "We had an off-the-cuff conversation about athletics. I told him one story is the Middle Passage and the sick and weak had to be pretty strong and that provided a good genetic basis for black athletes. I don't remember what prompted it."
Judge Keis, who has been the bench 18 years, likened the remarks to comments in sports lore that he said he has heard from athletes, including Calvin Hill, a former running back for the Dallas
Cowboys.
Mr. Witherspoon said the judge's comments were made April 16 during a hearing on a personal injury claim stemming from a traffic accident.
The judge, Mr. Witherspoon said, also made unsettling comments to his clients.
According to the complaint, the judge told the couple that "Tarrant County is made up of Republicans that think like him. He went on to explain the risks of litigation to my clients," Mr. Witherspoon wrote in the complaint.
"He told my clients that if they want to 'bet on black' it's their choice," Mr. Witherspoon said.
Judge Keis said he routinely uses a "roulette wheel" analogy when lecturing parties about the legal process but said he did not mean
anything racist.
"I tell them they're gambling," the judge said. "I told them, 'You can bet on black,' and I should have said, 'You can bet on red.' "
Mr. Witherspoon said the exchange was prompted when Judge Keis asked about the origin of his first name.
"I told him it was from Africa, and he began a lecture on slavery and the Middle Passage," Mr. Witherspoon said. "I'm not a real sensitive guy. I've developed a thick skin. People have a right to feel how
they want to feel. But my clients were more offended than I was. In fact, when we went into the hallways, they apologized to me."
He said his clients, who are white, chose to negotiate a settlement because of the comments made by the judge.
"They also told me that that was one of the reasons they settled
because they wondered if the judge would be fair," Mr. Witherspoon said. "We had some really important issues before the judge. So when he went off on slavery, they didn't feel they had a chance.
"I don't want to make a stretch and say he's racist. But he definitely has no tact whatsoever," he said.
Seana Willing, the Judicial Conduct Commission's executive director, would not confirm that a complaint had been filed.
"We have confidentiality rules. As a general rule, we'll investigate a complaint. If the evidence points to misconduct, we contact the judge and they're allowed to respond," Ms. Willing said. "The confidentiality is there to protect the investigation, and it protects the judge from having to defend himself against charges that are yet to be ferreted out."
Mr. Witherspoon listed Suzanne Calvert as the opposing attorney on the complaint, but Ms. Calvert said that she was not in the court
and that another attorney whom she would not name represented her office. Her office has a policy against speaking to the media, she said.
Mr. Witherspoon, 29, is a co-founder of Kelley & Witherspoon, a Dallas law firm that specializes in civil litigation. He is a graduate of Paul Quinn College and received his law degree from the University of Mississippi.
Judge Keis has no record of disciplinary history with the state board, officials said.
The judge said he would like to apologize to Mr. Witherspoon.
"From what I know, he is upset or angry," Judge Keis said. "I'm not sure what his motivation is. I don't want to hurt anybody. I apologize if I did, but Calvin Hill agrees with me. I'm no racist."
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