Judge Henderson subject of new formal complaint over his conduct

A new formal complaint says that Sedgwick County District Judge Timothy Henderson was dishonest in his testimony about a previous complaint accusing him of improper conduct as a judge.

Neither Henderson nor his attorney could be reached for comment Thursday.

The new complaint, filed Thursday with the Commission on Judicial Qualifications, alleges that Henderson was “not candid and honest” when testifying May 15 and 16 before a panel of judges and lawyers.

At the May hearing, Henderson was testifying before a panel about allegations that he repeatedly made sexually inappropriate and offensive comments in the presence of female prosecutors and an allegation that he asked a Wichita school board member to help his wife get a job.

That panel recommended that Henderson be disciplined by “public censure,” which is a published reprimand by the Kansas Supreme Court and is the least severe sanction it can impose on judges. The high court has scheduled a Dec. 10 hearing on the recommendation that the judge be censured.

The new complaint says that the judge’s testimony about the previous complaint “included unfounded responses to questions posed,” “lacked probity” and “in other ways violated provisions of the Code of Judicial Conduct.”

The latest complaint says the matters at issue include his testimony on his alleged comments about a part of his wife’s anatomy involved in childbirth; his testimony about alleged comments involving a child laborer and an adoption; his testimony about his inquiries for his wife with Lanora (Nolan) Franck, who at the time was a Wichita school board member; and his testimony about his use of a term that to some had a sexual connotation.

In August, Henderson’s attorney, Thomas Haney of Topeka, said: “The judge wants to get back to judging. The allegations were all alleged comments made off the bench, and none of them had anything to do with a pending case or anything before the judge.”

On Thursday, District Attorney Marc Bennett, whose assistant prosecutors were allegedly the targets of some of Henderson’s remarks, said it would be inappropriate for him to comment on the latest formal complaint against Henderson.

The new complaint was filed with the Commission on Judicial Qualifications, which helps the Kansas Supreme Court handle allegations of misconduct by judges.

The complaint, which was filed by an examiner who is responsible for presenting evidence to a judicial-conduct panel, says that Henderson violated Supreme Court rules requiring judges to “avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety” and to be impartial.

In May, Henderson was reassigned from the juvenile court, where he had been presiding judge, to the civil court department.

The latest complaint gives Henderson 20 days to file an answer.

This story was originally published October 30, 2014 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Judge Henderson subject of new formal complaint over his conduct."