A Tallahassee-area circuit judge told the Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday that she does not oppose a 60-day suspension without pay after she improperly acted as an attorney for her son following his arrest in a shooting incident.
A hearing panel of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission this month issued a 36-page document detailing findings and recommendations involving 2nd Judicial Circuit Judge Barbara Hobbs. The panel recommended a 60-day suspension for Hobbs and a public reprimand.
Hobbs’ attorneys filed a two-page response Tuesday at the Supreme Court that said she would not oppose the recommended discipline. “Judge Hobbs states, again, that she is remorseful for her conduct which (led) to the violations of the judicial canons in this matter and assures the (Supreme) Court that her misconduct will not reoccur,” the document said. “Thus, Judge Hobbs respectfully accepts and does not oppose the recommended action made by the Hearing Panel, Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission.”
The Supreme Court has ultimate authority about disciplining judges. Hobbs faced a series of allegations stemming in part from her son’s 2019 arrest after an incident in which he shot through a door at his home and struck a woman. Hobbs went to the Tallahassee police station and acted as her son’s attorney, including during police questioning of her son, according to the hearing panel.
“Judge Hobbs did not merely render advice to her son, without recompense,” the panel wrote. “She asserted self-defense and sought her son’s release by the TPD into her custody, without charges.”
The 2nd Judicial Circuit is made up of Leon, Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Liberty and Wakulla counties.
