Panel recommends Anoka Co. judge serve 6-month unpaid suspension for misconduct
A state panel is recommending a six-month unpaid suspension for an Anoka County judge who is accused of discrimination from the bench.
The recommendation comes several months after Judge John Dehen appeared before the panel to argue his case, defending a series of misconduct.
5 INVESTIGATES first reported on the complaint against Judge Dehen last July.
The panel, appointed by the state Board on Judicial Standards, found Judge Dehen broke several rules, violated the law, and failed to remain impartial.
According to the 23-page filing with the Minnesota Supreme Court, the panel found Judge Dehen’s conduct “undermined public confidence” by the way he tried to rehire his court reporter at a higher salary than allowed, “compromised decorum” by holding a remote hearing from his moving car, and allowed his personal beliefs on immigration to “influence his decisions” on guardianship cases for at-risk juveniles.
“There was a lot of concern amongst myself and other immigration attorneys in the local bar that this was happening,” said Evangeline Dhawan-Maloney, an attorney who represented one of several at-risk juveniles whose petitions Judge Dehen wrongly denied.
Many of his rulings were later overturned.
The panel found that Judge Dehen “manifested a bias against the law and non-citizen juveniles seeking immigration benefits.”
“The judge is there to simply make sure everyone understands what’s going on, the process, and basically sign the order,” Dhawan-Maloney told 5 INVESTIGATES earlier this year.
During the two-day proceedings in front of a panel last fall, Judge Dehen admitted that holding court from his car was “poor judgment.”
But Dehen defended his guardianship rulings, telling the panel that he “merely made an error of law.” But the panel described that defense as “not credible.”
Dehen’s attorney declined to comment.
Both Judge Dehen and the Board on Judicial Standards have 10 days to appeal the recommended punishment.
According to the court calendar, Judge Dehen was still hearing cases on Friday in Anoka County.