Judge accused of assaulting officer outside Atlanta nightclub removed from bench

ATLANTA (TND) — A 38-year-old judge accused of assaulting a police officer outside an Atlanta nightclub should be removed from the bench, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday.

Court documents note Douglas County Probate Judge Christina Peterson violated the Code of Judicial Conduct (CJC), as well as several violations the Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC) said showed “a pattern of judicial misconduct” while in office.

“The JQC Hearing Panel found that Judge Peterson violated multiple rules in the CJC and that those violations warrant her removal from the bench. We agree that removal is warranted here,” the Georgia Supreme Court noted in documents filed Tuesday.

“In light of her multiple violations of the (judicial code) rules in relation to several matters — some of them reflecting a flagrant disregard for the law, court rules, and judicial conduct rules; the pattern of violations that the (JQC) director proved by clear and convincing evidence; the extremely concerning nature of some of those violations, in particular with respect to the criminal contempt matter; and her behavior during the JQC inquiry, we conclude that removal is the appropriate sanction,” the court added.

The Atlanta Police Department recently released body camera video of Peterson’s arrest, which shows officers arriving to the scene on June 20 at 3:15 am In the footage, several people are fighting and yelling outside a club.

***WARNING: The following video contains graphic content. Viewer discretion is advised.***

Police said while officers and club security try to separate everyone and deescalate the crowd, a woman, later identified as Peterson, starts hollering at an officer and hits him. Peterson is then handcuffed and refuses to give police her identifying information so she can be taken to jail and processed for her charges.

“Take me where you need to take me — immediately,” she yells. “They will get a fingerprint and find out who I am.”

“That’s not how it works,” the officer says.

She later tells the officer to “shut the f*** up” and demands he not touch her.

Peterson was charged with simple battery against a police officer and felony obstruction of law enforcement officers.

She will not be eligible to be elected or appointed to any future judicial position in Georgia for seven years.

Peterson was sworn in for a four-year term as the Douglas County Probate Court judge on Dec. 29, 2020.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: WKRC contributed to this report.