Nicole Clinkscales, a former Columbus municipal judge, will be publicly reprimanded for multiple acts of judicial misconduct during her time on the bench from 2010 to 2015.
The Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday approved the Commission on Judicial Performance’s recommendation for the reprimand.
The reprimand will take place in open court and be delivered by a circuit court judge from the 16th Judicial District on the first day of the next court term, according to Darlene Ballard, the commission’s executive director.
The next Lowndes County circuit court term is scheduled to begin Aug. 15, according to Pat Stanley, a court clerk.
Clinkscales must also pay $563 for the costs of the proceedings. That money goes to the commission, according to Ballard.
The commission made the recommendation that Clinkscales be publicly reprimanded after it found she violated the Mississippi Code of Judicial Conduct when she endorsed a political candidate on Facebook; made racially biased posts on social media; and exhibited poor demeanor in court. The commission also found that Clinkscales ordered some individuals, including her nephew, into the city’s voluntary drug court program.
The state’s high court said it took into account the fact that Clinkscales had no disciplinary history prior to the commission’s findings and that she had cooperated during the investigation, according to the opinion.
Clinkscales has 14 days to file a motion for a rehearing, according to Ballard.
In a statement to The Dispatch Clinkscales indicated she did not intend to appeal for a rehearing.
The city council appointed Clinkscales to the city bench in 2010. She stepped down in 2015 after announcing that she was running for District 41 representative. She lost the election to Kabir Karriem.
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