Judge Enrique Monguia presides over criminal cases at the Clara Shortridge Folz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles.
LOS ANGELES - California’s Commission on Judicial Performance has publicly admonished a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge for jokingly threatening to “shoot” people, or have his bailiff do the shooting, in addition to making other discourteous or inappropriate remarks.
In an Aug. 28 statement, the panel found that Judge Enrique Monguia, who has served on the bench since 2014, engaged in multiple displays of misconduct in his courtroom by making improper remarks to a crime victim, prospective jurors, defendants and attorneys.
“Some of Judge Monguia’s remarks gave the appearance of prejudgment, embroilment and bias based on gender and ethnicity,” a commission news release states. “On at least one occasion, the judge baselessly blamed an adjudicated victim of domestic violence. In other instances, the judge’s comments had the potential to interfere with attorney-client relationships.”
During the 4 ½-year period covered in the admonishment, Monguia made references to wanting to shoot a defendant’s attorneys for talking too loud in the courtroom and “joked” that his bailiff had the authority to shoot anyone who crossed the space between the counsel table and the judge’s bench.
“The commission found that Judge Monguia’s remarks about shooting people, or having people shot in the courtroom, constituted an abuse of authority, fostered an atmosphere of intimidation in the courtroom and, even if made in jest, were undignified and discourteous,” the commission said, adding that the behavior violated numerous judicial canons.
In an incident that occurred during a criminal case, Monguia presided over a request from a victim of domestic violence who sought to change the terms of a restraining order so that she could be present during visits between her child and the father, who had recently been released from custody.
“... The way that you communicate to each other is through violence,” Monguia told the woman. “This is what you know. This is what you respond to.”
The panel found that such remarks demonstrated bias toward domestic violence victims, as well as gender bias.
“The commission found that the judge’s comments to the crime victim implied, without evidence, that a victim of felony domestic assault crimes was also responsible for violent behavior, would burden her community and was at least partially to blame for violent acts committed by the defendant,” the statement of admonishment says.
In another incident, the judge remanded a defendant without counsel to custody without establishing that there was a plan for the care of her young child, who was present during the court proceeding, according to the panel. In still another case, Monguia’s failure to provide counsel to a defendant caused needless delays that prolonged the time the defendant had to spend in jail.
Gregory Dresser, director-chief counsel for the commission, told the Southern California Record that all the information in the public admonishment consisted of undisputed facts and not simply allegations.
The commission indicated that Monguia generally acknowledged that his conduct was improper.
“Judge Monguia expressed regret and remorse for his actions and said that he had taken steps to address unconscious bias and other matters that contributed to his misconduct,” the commission said. “In determining to issue this public admonishment, the commission considered Judge Monguia’s admission to his misconduct, as well as his lack of prior discipline, as mitigating factors.”
