Colorado judge steps down after saying N-word, all lives matter at work
The judge did not deny or dispute the number of accusations against her outlined in the court's order.
A judge in Colorado has agreed to resign after using racial slurs from the bench, including the N-word.
It was discovered that Colorado District Court Judge Natalie Chase made inappropriate comments regarding Black people and used the N-word. According to the Denver Post, she also used derogatory language to speak about another judge.
Chase stepped down Friday and agreed to resign next month officially. According to reports, she did not deny or dispute the number of accusations against her outlined in the court’s order.
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Chase of the 18th Judicial District Court was censured on Friday by the Colorado Supreme Court after an investigation by The Denver Post exposed allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment in the courts.
She also expressed confusion over why white people cannot say the N-word and countered the Black Lives Matter movement with support towards “All Lives Matter.” It was also reported that Chase called another judge a derogatory term in conversation with fellow employees.
“Judge Chase is white and the Family Court Facilitator is Black. On the way back from Pueblo, Judge Chase asked the Family Court Facilitator questions about why Black people can use the N-word but not white people, and whether it was different if the N-word is said with an “er” or an “a” at the end of the word,” read the order. “During the conversation, Judge Chase used the full N-word a number of times.”
In another instance, Chase is under fire for using her employees to assist her in handling personal business such as asking a law clerk to write her personal emails and conduct personal research. She also instructed a court employee to drive her to the hospital and wait after declining an ambulance due to a health scare.
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In February 2020, while sitting in her robe, the judge told employees, some of whom were Black, that she would boycott the Superbowl “because she objected to the NFL players who were kneeling during the National Anthem in protest of police brutality against Black people.”
Chase did not dispute the events. Her official resignation date is May 31.
“You did not intend any racial animus, you acknowledge that your statements violated Canon Rule 1.2, which requires a judge to act in a manner that promotes public confidence in the judiciary,” read the order.
“You acknowledge that your use of the N-word does not promote public confidence in the judiciary and creates the appearance of impropriety. Although not directed at any person, saying the N-word has a significant negative effect on the public’s confidence in integrity of and respect for the judiciary.”
According to the Denver Post, a public censure is rare in Colorado for a judge and has only happened four times in almost ten years.
As reported by theGrio, a Colorado lawmaker is under fire for comments about slavery.
State Rep. Ron Hanks recently made insensitive and questionable comments on the House floor about the Three-Fifths Compromise, which references how slaves were counted.
“It was not impugning anybody’s humanity,” said Hanks. “Is this really racist to be talking about what the Three-Fifths Compromise was? I don’t think so, and I think it’s important. It’s part of the civics lesson here. It was brought up, and it merits discussion.”
“It took a war to do it. It took 600,000 American lives. It took a lot of treasure. That’s the kind of thing that ought to be taught,” he added.
Executive director of the Colorado Democratic Party accused him of whitesplaining the historical experience of Black people.
The fact that Representative Hanks thought it would be appropriate to make a ‘joke’ about lynching — especially at a time when we’re seeing a rise of racially motivated assaults on people of color across our country — is utterly despicable,” said Vinson in a statement.
Hanks told The Associated Press the video reflecting his comments were manipulated.
theGrio’s Tiffany Stewart contributed to this report.
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