According to the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct, Judge Jere Ledsinger of Manchester has received an ‘ethics complaint’ following a comment he made to a courtroom audience in July.
According to the Board, Ledsinger “made an inappropriate comment to a courtroom audience consisting of criminal defendants, some of whom were African-American.” The official complaint reads, “Specifically, referring to the Tennessee Supreme Court’s requirement that face coverings be worn in court, you [Ledsinger] stated, ‘ the Grand Wizard of our Supreme Court said we have to wear these masks.’
According to the complaint, Ledsinger has since written a letter acknowledging he was “wrong to make that statement.” In September, the judge was given notice by letter of the panel’s decision to launch an investigation, as required by Tennessee Code Annotated 17-5-303(d)(l). You can read the complaint and letter regarding Judge Ledsinger below.
