From Coast to Coast, Judicial Corruption Stinks

Odor in the Court
The Seattle Weekly by Rick Anderson - January 12, 2009

A few years back, Pierce County had cornered the market on judicial corruption. The list included Superior Court Judge Grant Anderson, who swapped favors in return for a new Cadillac; Sumner muni Judge Gene "Hammerin' Man" Hammermaster who threatened traffic offenders with life sentences; and kind-hearted Ralph Baldwin, the Lakewood municipal judge who invited lawyers and jurors into chambers for a cold beer at the end of a drunk-driving case - then, tipsy himself, drove home. So is anyone surprised to learn prosecutors are reviewing allegations - even before he takes the bench - that Pierce County Superior Court judge-elect Michael Hecht (left) patronized a male prostitute several years ago and recently threatened to kill the man? The TNT says the allegations were raised by supporters of outgoing Judge Sergio Armijo, claiming Hecht picks up male prostitutes near Tacoma's Antique Row. In an interview, the prostitute confirmed what he told Armijo's supporters, "saying that as a teenager he exchanged money for sex with Hecht on multiple occasions beginning in the late 1990s." The man, Joseph John Hesketh IV, introduced a News Tribune reporter to another man, 39-year-old Edward Smith, who said he had sex with Hecht in exchange for cash in the recent past. Both men are now homeless and have criminal records. Hecht, 58, married with three grown children and the grandfather of one, denies the allegations. He will be sworn in today. Memorably, on his campaign website, Hecht says: Judge Armijo's record is an embarrassment to the judiciary in our county...It is time for change and I say to the voters you will not be embarrassed by my decisions or my judicial temperament.