(WWJ) -- A Wayne County judge accused of using sexually charged language with two assistant prosecutors could be facing up to a year of unpaid suspension.
The Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments in the case of Circuit Judge Bruce Morrow, who allegedly used the explicit language during a 2019 murder trial. The Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission brought the case against Morrow last August, after the two women made the complaints.
The commission, which holds judges, magistrates and judicial referees accountable for misconduct, has recommended a year of unpaid suspension and public censure.
Morrow, who has been on the bench since 1992, was previously suspended for 60 days back in 2014 for several "missteps in eight trials he presided over," according to the Detroit News.
After previous hearings last fall and winter, a special master in the case determined Morrow used "inappropriate graphic language" during the trial, and in June, the JRC recommended the suspension and censure.
The Supreme Court can either find Morrow committed misconduct and impose a penalty, dismiss the case or send it back to the commission for further consideration, according to the News.
During the 2019 trial, one of the prosecutors reportedly asked for Morrow's opinion on her questioning of the medical examiner, according to the complaint. The judge allegedly came down from the bench to the prosecutor's table and told her his remarks would likely "make her blush."
He then proceeded to closely sit next to the prosecutor and ask "would you want foreplay before or after sex?" according to the complaint. "You start with all the information from the report, all the testimony crescendos to the cause and manner of the death, which is the sex of the testimony."
"You want to tease the jury with the details of the examination. You want to lead them to the climax of the manner and cause of death," he allegedly said, according to the complaint.
The prosecutor felt "frozen" after hearing those remarks, according to the complaint.
Attorneys for Morrow and the JTC each had 20 minutes to present their cases during Wednesday's hearing. Attorney William Murphy said "we're dealing with a power situation," when it comes to Morrow's use of the sexually charged language.
"Power of the position, power of the robe and abuse of that power," Murphy said. "And because of that I think substantial and severe sanction is appropriate, as the commission has recommended. I think public censure is appropriate, and again, suspension for 12 months without pay is the recommendation of the commission."
Murphy went on to say "I think that the commission did find that Judge Morrow, because of gender, treated two female prosecutors in a discourteous way."
He was then asked "well, that can be different from sexual harassment, right?" to which he replied, "not in my mind."
No final decision was made on Wednesday, and it was not clear when a decision might be made.
