What discipline could a Tri-Cities judge face after 2nd DUI charge?

A 13-year Benton County District Court judge accused this week of crashing his car while driving drunk will take a month off from hearing court cases.

Judge Terry M. Tanner Jr. is charged with having almost three times the legal blood-alcohol level for intoxication in Washington state when he high-centered his Cadillac in Richland on Monday.

It’s his second arrest since 2018 when he pleaded guilty to DUI after a similar crash and was reprimanded by the state’s judicial conduct board.

If convicted this time, the commission could go as far as to recommend the state Supreme Court remove him from office.

Judge Dan Kathren, the current presiding officer for Benton County District Court, told the Herald on Thursday that Tanner is taking a month of sick time to focus on his health.

“When he returns, we will determine what cases are appropriate for him to hear,” Kathren said. “The Rules of Professional Conduct dictate that there are certain cases he must not hear but there are gray areas, as well that all five judges will discuss to determine what is appropriate.”

Prosecutors also can file letters of recusal against him to prevent Tanner from presiding over individual cases.

Tanner could not be reached by the Herald this week about the crash and his arrest.

His arrest raises questions about what happens when the people responsible for enforcing the law are charged with breaking them.

He’s the second Tri-Cities judge in less than a year to be charged with a crime.

Superior Court Judge Sam Swanberg was accused of misdemeanor domestic violence assault charges. He spent most of the year on paid leave before being acquitted in a trial by a jury in September.

Previous reprimand

In 2018, Tanner went back to work as a judge the same week he was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

The former Richland city councilman was appointed to District Court in 2009. He was re-elected last November for a new 4-year term when he ran unopposed.

The annual salary for full-time District Court judges in Washington in 2022 was about $193,000. They preside over misdemeanor charges, such as DUIs, traffic offenses and minor assaults, as well as civil actions, such as small claims court.

After pleading guilty to the 2018 DUI, Tanner was reprimanded by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct.

The reprimand included an agreement that he would meet all the criteria of his sentence, engage in public speaking appearances about the crime and refrain from repeating the behavior.

The DUI case was moved to Yakima County District Court to prevent any conflict within Tanner’s own court or with the prosecutors who regularly come before him.

It’s unclear whether Tanner is still on probation from that case. At the time, he was sentenced to one day in jail, with 363 days suspended. The one day was converted to 15 days on electronic home monitoring.

He also was put on supervision for five years, with the option to petition to have that terminated after two years if he completed the probation requirements and stayed out of trouble in that time.

His driver’s license also was suspended for one year.

So what happens now?

Commission disciplinary action

If Tanner is convicted again, he would face jail time and fines, as well as harsher disciplinary measures from the state’s judicial conduct commission.

Those could be as severe as Tanner being removed from office by the state Supreme Court.

Typically the commission reaches a disciplinary agreement with the judge, as was the case with Tanner’s 2018 DUI.

The three levels of disciplinary action that can be taken by the commission, in order of severity, are an admonishment, a reprimand and censure.

A censure is issued when the commission “finds that conduct of the respondent violates a rule of judicial conduct, detrimentally affects the integrity of the judiciary, undermines public confidence in the administration of justice, and may or may not require a recommendation to the Supreme Court that the respondent be suspended (with or without pay) or removed.”

Tanner was previously reprimanded and warned that further legal trouble could result in undermining the integrity of the judiciary and undermine public confidence.

An agreement to not repeat the same actions was part of his corrective action agreed to in the reprimand.

A commission spokesperson told the Herald that a judge who engages in repeat violations of the same behavior would likely receive more severe disciplinary action.

Tanner could also find himself in hot water if it is found he lied to the officer about the car crash.

In 2018, he was found crouching by a group of mailboxes, and told officers he was just checking his mail.

The commission spokesperson said past disciplinary action and the circumstances of the incident are one of a number of aggravating factors the commission considers.

With a censure, the commission also can recommend suspension to the state Supreme Court with or without pay or removal from office.

Judges being censured also have the right to resign.

After the 2018 incident, Tanner self reported the arrest to the commission, according to Herald reporting at the time. It’s unclear if he has contacted the commission yet on his most recent arrest. The board’s investigations are not public until a ruling is made.

The commission spokesperson said that while District Court judges are not explicitly exempted from a recall vote, it is not a path used to discipline judges.

Alcohol monitoring bracelet

Tanner’s next hearing is set for Jan. 25 but his case is expected to be moved again out of Benton County.

This week, his first appearance was before Benton-Franklin Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Shea Brown.

She ordered him not to drive until he obtains and wears an alcohol monitoring bracelet and has an ignition interlock device installed in his car, according to the court documents.

Tanner’s crash happened about 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 2, on the 2600 block of Kingsgate Way, according to court documents filed in Benton County District Court.

A Richland police officer found his 2014 Cadillac sedan high-centered on a large concrete block that appeared to be knocked over and pushed back.

The block was one of several in a row, blocking access to a gravel lot near the gas station. According to the Washington Department of Labor and Industry, “ecology blocks” that size weigh up to 4,000 lbs.

Paramedics and Officer Tyler Denslow said Tanner smelled of alcohol and appeared intoxicated, said the documents.

A witness said he helped Tanner out of the driver’s seat while the car was stuck on the block, with the wheels spinning.

When Denslow spoke with Tanner, the judge initially denied he was driving, said the vehicle did not belong to him and that he did not know whose car it was, according to the documents. However, the car is registered to Tanner, said police.

Tanner declined taking a field sobriety test or breathalyzer at the scene and was taken to the Benton County jail in Kennewick where he blew well over the legal limit of .08% blood alcohol, as measured by a breathalyzer that measured in two ways — electro-chemical and infrared, said court documents.

In the first test, he blew a .220% as measured by infrared and .225% as measured by electro-chemical at 7:36 p.m. For the second test at 7:41 p.m., he registered a .232% infrared and a .237% electro-chemical.

Benton County sheriff’s officials confirmed he was booked into the jail at 8:14 p.m. Monday and released about 14 hours later after his court appearance Tuesday morning when his bail was set at $5,000.