Congress will investigate a federal judge accused of sexually assaulting a witness during his time as a federal prosecutor in Utah, a new report says.
Richard Warren Roberts, then a civil rights attorney for the Justice Department, is accused of repeatedly raping Terry Elrod Mitchell in 1981, according to The Salt Lake City Tribune.
“Our initial review of the allegations [against Roberts] has caused alarm and distress over their serious nature,” said Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, in a statement. “We will work with the House and Senate Judiciary Committees to determine next best steps to ensure justice is served.”
Mitchell on Wednesday filed a federal civil lawsuit against Roberts, accusing him of sexually assaulting her while she was a witness in a case he was prosecuting.
Roberts, then 27, allegedly coerced Mitchell’s secrecy by telling the then-16-year-old that if their interactions were discovered, it would result in a mistrial and a serial killer would walk free.
“We have conclusive proof,” said Rocky Anderson, Mitchell’s attorney and the former mayor of Salt Lake City. “This isn’t just a he said, she said. It is proof we will offer at trial.”
The Salt Lake City Tribune reported on Wednesday that Mitchell witnessed Joseph Paul Franklin fatally shoot two African-American teenagers in August 1980.
Franklin was convicted of two civil rights violations March 1981, eventually receiving the death penalty in 2013 for confessions, convictions and links to more than 20 other sniper-style murders nationwide.
Roberts informed Mitchell of Franklin’s execution, the publication said, unearthing her suppressed memories of abuse she allegedly suffered. Mitchell is now seeking a jury trial and up to $25 million in damages against Roberts.
The lawsuit is possible after 35 years, it added, because Roberts immediately left Utah and never returned, freezing deadlines on raising allegations for civil action for alleged child sexual abuse.
“A prosecutor has the duty to avoid any actual, or even the appearance of, personal bias,” Anderson wrote in Wednesday’s complaint.
“Perhaps the most outrageous violation of that duty would be to have sex with a major eyewitness of the case, particularly a young girl who was as vulnerable as Mitchell.”
Judge Warren Roberts was always known for his “rapist wit”.
Roberts and Bill Cosby should get together.
They’d make a great team.
I guess this means he won’t get the usurpreme court nomination.
How many other victims are there?
Tip of the iceberg people.
“Congress to probe rape allegations against federal judge: report”
One has to wonder exactly HOW they’re going to ‘probe’.