5 www.loubar.org December 2025 as impeachment is too slow of a process. I’m guessing he couldn’t convince anyone to place Justice Goodwine in cuffs, so he has taken the impeachment route. KRS 63.020 through KRS 63.075 addresses the mechanics of impeachment; the statutes do not include a definition of misdemeanor. KRS 63.035 (2) only provides that “[t]he articles of impeachment shall state with rea- sonable certainty the misdemeanor in office for which impeachment is sought; and if there be more than one (1) misdemeanor, each shall be stated separately and distinctly.” So, let’s take a quick look at judges, both federal and state, who have been im- peached. At the federal level, the United States Constitution gives Congress the authority to impeach and remove judges based on “treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Former Chief Justice William Rehnquist believed that the most significant judicial impeachment in our history came in the case against Associate Supreme Court Justice Salmon Chase in 1804, the only Supreme Court justice ever impeached. Justice Chase was a staunch Federalist appointed by President George Washing- ton. The Republican-dominated House of Representatives accused him in the Articles of Impeachment of high crimes and misde- meanors for denouncing Republican poli- tics in charges to a grand jury and showing blatant partiality toward Federalist policies in two controversial jury trials (Supreme Court justices at that time also performed duties as circuit court judges). At the time there were 25 Republicans in the Senate and nine Federalists, more than enough to convict Justice Chase with the necessary two-thirds vote if the Senators voted along party lines. After an 18-day trial, however, the Senate voted to acquit. In a 2004 article published in the University of Richmond Law Review titled “Judicial Independence,” 38 U. Rich. L. Rev. 579 (2004), former Chief Justice Rehnquist wrote that the significance of the Chase acquittal “cannot be overstated—Chase’s narrow escape from conviction in the Sen- ate exemplified how close the development of an independent judiciary came to be stultified.” Id. at 588. Although the Republicans had ex- pounded grandiose theories about impeachment being a method by which the judiciary could be brought into line with prevailing political views, the case against Chase was tried on a basis of specific allegations of judicial misconduct. Nearly every act charged against him had been performed in the discharge of his judicial office. His behavior during the Callender trial was a good deal worse than most historians seem to realize, and the refusal of six of the Republican Senators to vote to convict even on this count surely can- not have been intended to condone Chase’s acts. Instead, it represented a judgment that impeachment should not be used to remove a judge for conduct in the exercise of his judicial duties. The political precedent set by Chase’s acquittal has governed that day to this: a judge’s judicial acts may not serve as a basis for impeachment. Id. at 588-89. Subsequent impeachments of federal judges that were based on their judicial acts have also met with acquittal, the Senate finding that the challenged acts did not amount to high crimes and misdemeanors. Notably, James H. Peck, who presided over the District Court of Missouri, was impeached in 1830 for abuse of power after he held a lawyer in contempt for publishing criticism of one of his decisions; the Senate acquitted him in 1831. Constitutional Law Reporter, www.constitutionallawreporter.com, Fed- eral Judge James H. Peck Not Guilty of Abuse of Power. The Articles of Impeach- ment lodged against Charles Swayne of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida included similar charges of abuse of his contempt power and was also acquit- ted by the Senate in 1905. Id., District Court Judge Charles Swayne Beats Impeachment. Finally, Harold Louderback of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California was impeached in 1933 for favor- itism in appointing bankruptcy receivers and was acquitted by the Senate the same year. Id., Federal Judge Harold Louderback Beat Impeachment Charges. The eight federal judges the Senate has convicted of high crimes and misdemeanors were all based on extrajudicial conduct. Notable examples include Judge West Humphries, a Tennessee judge who joined the Confederacy at the outbreak of the Civil War and accepted a judgeship in the Confed- erate judicial system without resigning his federal judgeship. Library of Congress.gov, West H. Humphreys - Federal Impeachment - Research Guides at Library of Congress. Judge Robert Archbald took the bench in 1910 on the Third Circuit Court of Ap- peals and the U.S. Commerce Court and was impeached and convicted in 1913 for soliciting and accepting wrongful gifts from litigants, www.constitutionallawreporter. com, The Life & Impeachment of Federal Judge Robert W Archbald. Harry Claiborne, appointed to the District of Nevada, was found guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors after a jury found him guilty of tax evasion, becoming the first federal judge in history to be convicted of crimes while on the bench. U.S. Senate.gov, U.S. Senate: Impeachment Trial of Judge Harry E. Claiborne, 1986. Finally, Thomas Porteous served on the bench for the Eastern District of Louisiana until 2010, when he was impeached and convicted for falsifying financial disclosure forms and soliciting cash and other gifts from lawyers who appeared before him. Library of Congress.gov, G. Thomas Porte- ous, Jr. - Federal Impeachment - Research Guides at Library of Congress. According to a post on the National Consti- tution Center’s website, “the impeachment of state-level supreme court judges is rare, noting that “The National Council of State Legislatures could only cite a handful of instances in a special website section on the subject of impeachment.” State judges have been impeached, but very rarely | Constitu- tion Center. This article reported that “the most prominent impeachment of a state supreme court judge” was in Pennsylvania in 1994, where State Supreme Chief Judge Rolf Larsen was impeached and removed from office by two-thirds of the state Senate “for meeting privately with an attorney to decide the outcomes of cases.” Id. In 1872, two New York Supreme Court Justices faced the pos- sibility of impeachment because of their con- nections to the corrupt Tweed Ring, George G. Barnard and Albert Cardozo. Barnard fought the charges but was removed by the state assembly. Id. Cardozo resigned and is better known today as the father of Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Cardozo. Id. The articles of impeachment filed by Jack Richardson against Justice Pam Goodwine will be considered by the General Assembly in the 2026 legislative session. This is my last article for the Bar Briefs as my two-year term as Chief Judge of Jefferson Circuit Court ends on December 31st. I ap- preciate the opportunity that the Louisville Bar Association has given me to write articles for its publication. May you have joyful yet relaxing holidays to conclude 2025, and I hope the very best for each of you in 2026. Chief Judge Ann Bailey Smith presides in Di- vision 13 of Jefferson Circuit Court. n (Continued from previous page) COURT NEWS Public Notice for Reappointment of Incumbent U.S. Magistrate Judge Regina S. Edwards The current term of office of United States Magistrate Judge Regina S. Edwards is due to expire on July 27, 2026. Comments from members of the bar and the public are invited and should be directed in accordance with the notice located at www.kywd. uscourts.gov. n New Chief Judge for Western District Effective November 14, Judge David J. Hale assumed the position of Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, succeeding Judge Greg N. Stivers. Pursuant to 28 U.S. Code § 136, chief district judges serve a term of seven years. n
