A man had his drug conviction overturned on appeal Thursday due to comments made by the Detroit federal judge that oversaw his trial.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that U.S. District Judge Stephen Murphy III should have recused himself from the trial of Leron Liggins after declaring publicly that “this guy looks like a criminal to me,” in reference to Liggins.
“Such remarks are wholly incompatible with the fair administration of Justice,” the appeals court wrote in the ruling.
Murphy, who is white, said he made the remarks about Liggins, who is Black, out of frustration over multiple delays in the case, and said he did apologize to Liggins when the trial was finally set to proceed two years later.
Despite that apology, the appeals court still maintained that Murphy should have acquiesced to the request of Liggins’s attorney and removed himself. As a result, Liggins’s heroin distribution conviction and 10-year prison sentence were thrown out.
Leaving them in place “would substantially undermine the public’s confidence in the judicial process,” 6th Circuit Judge Eric Clay wrote in the 3-0 opinion.
A new trial for Liggins with a different judge has been ordered.
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