Removed from bench in 2012, former judge asks voters for second chance
Jen Fifield
The stories that have been told about Phillip Woolbright are much different than the one he wants written.
Woolbright, a candidate for justice of the peace in the West Valley's Arrowhead district, wants voters to know about his passion for the justice system and dedication to rooting out corruption.
That’s not what he has made the news for in the past.
Woolbright was elected as Arrowhead’s justice of the peace in 2010. Less than two years later, the Arizona Supreme Court removed him from the bench.
Why he was removed from the bench
The court found that he had violated several rules of the Arizona Code of Judicial Conduct as he reacted to criminal charges brought against him by his now ex-wife.
Among the findings from the Arizona Commission on Judicial Conduct, which the Supreme Court affirmed: Woolbright intentionally evaded being served with a court order of protection meant to protect his ex-wife and children from him, and then violated the order once he had been served, all while failing to disclose to the court the order against him, and while using his position to try to influence law enforcement.
The most serious acts of his misconduct, the commission found, were "his ongoing and multiple acts of deceit and dishonesty, and his various efforts to abuse his authority and judicial position.”
The Supreme Court banned Woolbright from serving as a judicial officer for five years.
It has now been six.
Woolbright is challenging incumbent Craig Wismer. The primary election is Aug. 28.
Asking for another chance
Woolbright wants voters to give him a second chance.
He denies certain facts that he previously admitted to in court testimony, and he alleges that his fellow judges at the time conspired against him to increase his penalty.
"I've paid for something I didn't do," he said.
He points to how, in May 2015, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge set aside his criminal conviction for violating the order of protection. That ruling voided the guilty judgment against him, but didn’t wipe the conviction from his record.
After a contentious custody battle, Woolbright’s two sons who are under 18 now live with him nearly full-time. His ex-wife moved to Texas.
Wismer, who has served as Arrowhead’s justice of the peace since 2012, said he doesn't understand how Woolbright can justify running for office again.
Woolbright can’t separate himself from his conviction or findings of judicial misconduct, Wismer said.
"This is not a checkered past," he said. "We're talking about a pattern here that should not be excused."
Court constables from four districts, including Arrowhead, are endorsing Wismer, according to a letter Wismer provided The Arizona Republic.
In the letter, the constables credit Wismer with restoring "dignity, integrity, and respect to his justice precinct.”
Allegations started with a fight
Woolbright was elected in 2010 and officially took the bench in January 2011.
About two months later, Woolbright and his ex-wife simultaneously filed orders of protection against one another. His ex-wife alleged that he abused her and one of their sons. A judge approved the order, temporarily forbidding Woolbright from being around her, or his children. His request for an order was not granted.
Woolbright said he has never abused anyone.
Woolbright then dodged getting served with the order of protection multiple times over a matter of days, the commission found, including one time while he was inside the Northwest Regional Court Center in Surprise, where he often heard cases related to orders of protection.
A court server was waiting in the parking lot and Woolbright asked a court manager to move his car to an area restricted to judges, and then left in the car, according to the commission.
He first admitted in testimony that he had the manager move the car because he knew someone was waiting outside to serve him. Later, though, he told the commission he didn’t know who was outside.
He now says he thought it might be someone attempting to hurt him, and he never intentionally avoided being served.
The commission found that his testimony on the matter violated a rule that judges should cooperate with an investigation and "be candid and honest.” They also found that he “aggressively challenged” the court manager’s testimony, which violated a rule against being coercive.
Using prestige of office
After being served, Woolbright continued to hear cases as a judge related to orders of protection without disclosing the order against him.
He said he was using the “ 'wisdom' gained from his own and ongoing personal experience,” according to the commission, which found this violated a rule against letting his own relationships influence his judicial behavior.
When his ex-wife wouldn’t let him see his children during times at which he thought he could, he told police that he was a judge and made comments that the commission later found violated a rule against abusing prestige of judicial office for personal benefit.
Woolbright said the police took his statements too literally and seriously.
In July 2011, after a judge issued new visitation rights for Woolbright, he told his ex-wife he would come get his children at her house, and he would bring police with him. She agreed, according to court documents.
When he arrived, though, police did not come to the door with him. Shortly after, police arrested him for violating his order of protection, which did not allow him to be at her home.
A judge convicted him of this charge in October 2012, and another judge set aside the conviction in 2015.
Woolbright admits to violating the protection order, but says he didn’t do so knowingly.
Perception ‘irreparably impaired’
The commission found in July 2012, before Woolbright’s criminal conviction, that his actions had “damaged the reputation of his court and the public’s respect for the judiciary as a whole.”
“The public’s perception of respondent’s ability to carry out judicial responsibilities with integrity and impartiality … has been irreparably impaired,” the commission said at the time.
Woolbright said he thinks the commission was influenced by other judges, who testified that he had intentionally evaded the court order, and who advocated for harsh punishment.
“They just believed them instead of me,” he said.
He said the other judges had reasons to want him out of office.
For example, he said, they knew that he was an advocate for lowering judges’ pay in order to increase clerks’ salaries, and that he was against “double dipping” where judges take the job after getting a pension elsewhere.
He filed a complaint earlier this year to the commission stating that two judges intimidated and influenced witnesses and made public statements in an attempt to influence the commission's investigation against him.
“I was a victim of slander and lies to the commission that were politically motivated,” Woolbright said. “The people simply had their own agendas and money was one of the biggest factors.”
The commission, in response, told him he didn’t have evidence, he said.
John Keegan, former Arrowhead justice of the peace who served as Woolbright’s training judge, testified at the time that Woolbright had intentionally evaded the order.
Woolbright said Keegan lied.
Keegan said Woolbright is the one who lied. He said it was his hope at the time that Woolbright would be banned from the court for his actions.
The fact that the Supreme Court removed Woolbright from the bench “should tell the voters everything they need to know,” Keegan said.
Wismer says he runs for victims’ rights
Wismer said he has no confidence in Woolbright’s ability to provide impartial judgments and to decide domestic violence-related cases.
Wismer said he wants to continue to serve the district because he enjoys what he is doing.
He was elected after Melanie DeForest, an interim justice of the peace brought in after Woolbright, withdrew her election bid after questions arose about her education.
Wismer said it was a natural progression for him after working for former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl for 22 years.
As a judge, he touts often recognizing the hardships of those in front of them and sending their cases to a special court in which community service is offered in place of fines. Wismer said he also makes a point of dismissing minor charges, such as driving on a suspended license, when he can.
Woolbright says he runs to oust corruption
Woolbright said he is running again because he wants to restore honor in court rooms.
He said his experience taught him that the court today “doesn’t hold anyone liable for perjury.”
He wants to create a rehabilitation program for repeat offenders.
Woolbright said he is discouraged by the corruption he saw in the court, and wants to change that.
“My passion and love for the judiciary will never change.”
Reach reporter Jen Fifield at 602-444-8763 or jen.fifield@azcentral.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JenAFifield.
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