Judge’s Country Club Membership Ruled Permissible
A panel has ruled that U.S. Bankruptcy Judge George Paine II’s membership in a Nashville country club that has no women or blacks as full-fledged members does not violate the judicial code of conduct.
But several on the panel of Sixth Circuit Appeals Court judges strongly disagreed with the ruling, saying the Belle Meade Country Club has a clear record of discrimination.
Paine declined to be interviewed, but in a written statement he lamented the corrosive atmosphere in the 6th Circuit and praised the 10-8 vote to dismiss the complaint.
Complaints against federal judges rarely result in disciplinary action. According to data on the U.S. Courts website, there were 1,159 complaints concluded during the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, 2010. None resulted in corrective action.
