Court suspends Judge Mardi Levey Cohen for campaign related infractions
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday suspended a Broward County judge who admitted violating several judicial canons in her 2022 election campaign.
Justices agreed with the Judicial Qualifications Commission that Broward County Judge Mardi Levey Cohen should be suspended for 10 days without pay and undergo a public reprimand.
Cohen admitted that she “disseminated unverified information” that accused her opponent of being a fraud after Cohen received an email from someone claiming to be a relative of the opponent, according to the order.
In another instance, Cohen admitted filing an IRS complaint challenging the tax-exempt status of a church that hosted an event for her opponent, according to the order. Cohen then sent a copy of the complaint to the church with a false return address “suggesting that the correspondence was from the IRS itself,” justices wrote.
“The Commission and Judge Levey Cohen agree that these actions violated Canons 1, 2A, 7A(3)(b), and 7A(3)(e)(ii) of the Code of Judicial Conduct,” the justices wrote. “Those canons require judges always to conduct themselves in a manner that upholds the integrity of the judiciary, including when acting as a candidate for judicial office.”
Canon 7A(3)(e)(ii), “[I]n particular prohibits judicial candidates from knowingly misrepresenting facts about themselves or an opponent,” the justices wrote.
However, justices also agreed with the commission’s finding of mitigating factors.
“Without minimizing the seriousness of Judge Levey Cohen’s misconduct, the Commission found as mitigating circumstances that the judge admitted her misconduct, accepted responsibility, and cooperated with the Commission in all respects,” the justices wrote. “We accept the Commission’s evaluation of Judge Levey Cohen’s responsiveness and contrition. For all these reasons, we approve the Amended Stipulation and Amended Findings and Recommendations of Discipline in this matter.”
The May 8 order, Inquiry Concerning a Judge JQC Nos. 2022-429, 2022-461 & 2022-502 Re: Hon. Mardi Levey Cohen, is Case No. SC2024-0992.
