Embattled Broward Circuit Judge Matthew Destry is now facing formal ethics charges filed Thursday by Florida’s Judicial Qualifications Committee over ex parte communications in a controversial case.
The JQC’s investigative panel found probable cause to bring formal charges against Destry over a meeting with political contacts amid mounting public criticism. The judge was in the spotlight for his treatment of Herbert Smith, a young black parole violator who he sentenced to 60 years in prison. A Change.Org petition urging Destry’s removal from the bench gathered more than 40,000 signatures.
