Judicial watchdog files charges against Broward judge who promoted salacious rumors, AI recording in campaign
The state's official judicial ethics watchdog has filed formal charges against a newly elected Broward judge who promoted a salacious tell-all and a deepfake recording during her 2024 campaign.
Lauren Peffer, whose term on the bench began in January after she won the August 2024 primary, campaigned on a platform of restoring public confidence in the judiciary. As evidence that of that loss in confidence, Peffer made public references to a self-published book called 'The Ninth Circus Court of Florida,' a tell-all written by a former employee of the Orlando-area court system.
Those references to the book were made in an interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel's Editorial Board when seeking the media company's endorsement. The Sun Sentinel did not endorse her.
The book painted the Ninth Circuit as a hotbed of corruption, but as Peffer's 2024 campaign was taking shape, there was no indication that the book Peffer promoted had any impact in that judicial circuit. It had no published reviews and no news organizations wrote or broadcast any stories about it.
Asked by the South Florida Sun Sentinel in June about the apparent silence surrounding the book, Peffer provided a link to a recording that purported to be a conversation about the book between Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz and Lisa Munyon, chief administrative judge of the Ninth Circuit. On the recording, those two judges are supposedly joined by Florida Supreme Court Justice Renatha Francis.
The recording was a fake, according to all three judges and the Judicial Qualifications Commission notice of charges, which accuse Peffer of failing to maintain the 'dignity appropriate to judicial office and act in a manner consistent with the impartiality, integrity, and independence of the judiciary,' as outlined in the state judicial canons.
'Artificially created deepfakes are a tool for misinformation and digital impersonation used to influence elections and spread disinformation,' the Judicial Qualifications Commission wrote in its announcement of formal charges. 'Your campaign theme was to restore the public's trust, but your behavior did the opposite and brought harm to the dignity and integrity of the judiciary.'
Peffer acknowledged the problems with the book in an interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel in July and promised to stop referring to it in her campaign. She won the election with 52.5% of the vote.
But according to the JQC, she should never have cited the book in the first place. She admitted she never spoke to the author of the tell-all, never spoke to any of the judges involved in the accusations, and never tried to authenticate the recording before sharing it.
'Rather than promote public confidence in the judiciary, your actions eroded public confidence by perpetuating a false perception of illegal, unethical, or immoral conduct by Justices of the Florida Supreme Court, a Chief Judge, and others working within the judicial branch,' the JQC wrote.
Peffer has 20 days to file a written response to the charges.
She released a statement Friday afternoon pointing out that she had no ties to the author of the Ninth Circuit book, whose website also posted the deepfake recording.
'My sole intent was to provide an example of the scrutiny a judge faces and why the judiciary must hold itself to the highest moral standard,' she said. 'While unintentional, I take responsibility for my actions and apologize for the unfortunate effects my reference may have caused my fellow judiciary members.'
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457. Follow him on Threads.net/@rafael.olmeda.
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37 minutes ago
Los Angeles-area mayors demand that Trump administration stop stepped-up immigration raids
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San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Dozens of LA-area mayors demand the Trump administration stop intensified immigration raids
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He later said he based his comments on photos and footage he had seen that turned out not to be a representation of Guard members in Los Angeles. Curfew continues in downtown LA Police detained more than 20 people, mostly on curfew violations, on the first night of the curfew and used crowd-control projectiles to break up hundreds of protesters. But officers were more aggressive in controlling demonstrators Wednesday evening and as the curfew took effect, police were beginning to make arrests. Los Angeles police have made nearly 400 arrests and detentions since Saturday, the vast majority of which were for failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement, according to the police department. There have been a handful of more serious charges, including for assault against police officers and for possession of a Molotov cocktail and a gun. Nine police officers have been hurt, mostly with minor injures. Some were transported to a hospital and released. 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Hamilton Spectator
2 hours ago
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Dozens of LA-area mayors demand the Trump administration stop intensified immigration raids
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dozens of mayors from across the Los Angeles region banded together Wednesday to demand that the Trump administration stop the stepped-up immigration raids that have spread fear across their cities and sparked protests across the U.S. But there were no signs President Donald Trump would heed their pleas. About 500 of the National Guard troops deployed to the Los Angeles protests have been trained to accompany agents on immigration operations , the commander in charge said Wednesday. And while some troops have already gone on such missions, he said it's too early to say if that will continue even after the protests die down. 'We are expecting a ramp-up,' said Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, noting that protests across the nation were being discussed. 'I'm focused right here in LA, what's going on right here. But you know, I think we're, we're very concerned.' 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The city's nightly curfew will remain in effect as long as necessary. It covers a 1-square-mile (2.5-square-kilometer) section of downtown where the protests have been concentrated in the city that encompasses roughly 500 square miles (1,295 square kilometers). 'If there are raids that continue, if there are soldiers marching up and down our streets, I would imagine that the curfew will continue,' Bass said. Those who have been caught up in the nationwide raids include asylum seekers, people who overstayed their visas and migrants awaiting their day in immigration court. The administration has cited the protests in its decision to deploy the military. Governor asks court to step in California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has asked a federal court to put an emergency stop to the military helping immigration agents in the nation's second-largest city. This week, guardsmen began standing protectively around agents as they carry out arrests. A judge set a hearing for Thursday. The Trump administration called the lawsuit a 'crass political stunt endangering American lives' in its official response on Wednesday. The military is now closer to engaging in law enforcement actions such as deportations, as Trump has promised in his crackdown . The Guard has the authority to temporarily detain people who attack officers, but any arrests must be made by law enforcement. The president posted on the Truth Social platform that the city 'would be burning to the ground' if he had not sent in the military. Some 2,000 National Guard soldiers are in Los Angeles and are soon to be joined by 2,000 more along with about 700 Marines, Sherman said. Speaking in an interview with The Associated Press and ABC, Sherman initially said National Guard troops had already temporarily detained civilians in the Los Angeles protests over immigration raids. He later said he based his comments on photos and footage he had seen that turned out not to be a representation of Guard members in Los Angeles. Curfew continues in downtown LA Police detained more than 20 people, mostly on curfew violations, on the first night of the curfew and used crowd-control projectiles to break up hundreds of protesters. But officers were more aggressive in controlling demonstrators Wednesday evening and as the curfew took effect, police were beginning to make arrests. Los Angeles police have made nearly 400 arrests and detentions since Saturday, the vast majority of which were for failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement, according to the police department. There have been a handful of more serious charges, including for assault against police officers and for possession of a Molotov cocktail and a gun. Nine police officers have been hurt, mostly with minor injures. Some were transported to a hospital and released. Protests have spread nationwide Demonstrations have also spread to other cities nationwide, including Dallas and Austin in Texas, and Chicago and New York, where thousands rallied and more arrests were made. In New York City, police said they took 86 people into custody during protests in lower Manhattan that lasted into Wednesday morning. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the majority of demonstrators were peaceful. A 66-year-old woman in Chicago was injured when she was struck by a car during downtown protests Tuesday evening, police said. Video showed a car speeding down a street where people were protesting. In Texas, where police in Austin used chemical irritants to disperse several hundred demonstrators Monday, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's office said Texas National Guard troops were 'on standby' in areas where demonstrations are planned. Guard members were sent to San Antonio, but Police Chief William McManus said he had not been told how many troops were deployed or their role ahead of planned protests Wednesday night and Saturday. Officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety said the Texas National Guard was present at a protest downtown. The protests began Friday after federal immigration raids arrested dozens of workers in Los Angeles. ___ Golden reported from Seattle. Associated Press writers Julie Watson in San Diego, Jesse Bedayn in Denver, and Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas, contributed to this report. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
