Sex, cocaine and anti-Semitism: California judge hit with monster complaint

A judge in California has been accused of strange sexual behaviour, cocaine use and humiliating a colleague as a 'Jew' in a sweep complaint filed by the state Judicial Performance Commission.

Greg Kreis is an elected judge from northern California, having served on the Humboldt County Superior Court since 2017. (He was originally determined by then-Gov. Jerry Brown.) He will be re-elected this year, advertising “A commitment to public service.” However, the charges filed earlier this month allege Kreis has engaged in “willful misconduct in office” as well as “conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice.”

The judge is accused of behavior that would make most boys blush. At a 2019 summer social gathering referred to as the “Antlers Campout,” for example, Kreis allegedly smoked marijuana before boarding a pontoon boat, where he continued to drink to the point of apparent intoxication. He then allegedly belittled a deputy public defender as a “Jew” — repeatedly — before throwing that man, fully clothed, off the boat and into the water.

During that party on the same boat, Kreis allegedly pantomimed “something akin to a dance around” to the wife of another public defender. The complaint describes this woman as wearing a bathing suit and holding her youngest child. The document – which is addressed directly to Kreis – alleges that you “moved your body and moaned or made other noises that suggested you were having sex” with her.

Some of the egregious behavior alleged occurred before Kreis served on the bench, but the commission says it nonetheless “brings the judicial office into disrepute.” The report describes a party “circa 2015″ at the home of a friend of Kreis'. “You walked in [her] bedroom while she was sleeping, pulled down your pants and had your penis out and close to her face as you tried to wake her up,” he says.

The complaint also alleges that Kreis “frequently used cocaine” during a period from 2013 to 2017 before becoming a judge, highlighting an outing in October 2015 when he allegedly “drove two attorneys to a Humboldt Hill home for the purpose of buying cocaine'. adding: “On the return trip, you used cocaine while driving.”

Kreis's behavior in court toward legal colleagues is also called to account. Shortly before becoming a judge, Kreis served as an attorney and allegedly referred to a deputy district attorney as a “bitch” or “fake bitch.”

On an Instagram Position, Kreis writes that he is “confident” that formal proceedings will “clear my name” and that “allegations and outright lies will be dismissed.” Kreis also implies that politics plays a role in the accusations. “It's no surprise that these diabolical and false claims, some of them from a decade ago, are being made in a very public way the same week that the polls go out in a re-election campaign,” he writes.

The Judicial Performance Commission is an independent government agency that investigates judicial misconduct. The charges against Kreis were brought after a preliminary investigation. In response to his request Rolling rockKreis responded, “I have been advised by my attorney not to make any statements at this time.”

As a judge, the complaint also alleges Kreis had an affair with a colleague on the court. When an employee began discussing this relationship with other court staff, Kreis allegedly complained to another judge and the court executive that the employee was “spreading false rumors” about him. The employee was later fired. The complaint alleges that Kreis “actually had a sexual or romantic relationship” and by “making false or misleading statements” to court officials, “violated the Code of Judicial Conduct.”

Judge Kreis is also accused of inappropriate touching at a social gathering in 2018 where he had been drinking. The report describes his interactions with a married couple whom Kreis knew little about. “As you were leaving, you hugged [the husband]grabbed and/or slapped his bottom and said things to the effect of… “your wife will get it too”. After the woman “firmly” told Kreis not to touch her, the complaint alleges, “you told her you were going to do it anyway, and then hugged her and grabbed or slapped her buttocks without her consent.”

During his time as judge, Kreis also reportedly took a load of passengers — several of whom had been drinking in his vehicle — on a tour of historic homes in the town of Eureka. The complaint alleges Kreis also had liquor with him. “While you were driving, you had a cup containing an alcoholic beverage in one hand and you were driving with your other hand,” he says.

The 19-count complaint additionally accuses Kreis of several professional lapses on the bench, including failing to make proper ethics disclosures or recuse himself from cases involving attorneys with whom he maintained friendships or complicated social relationships.

Kreis has until Feb. 20 to respond in writing to the San Francisco-based commission, which can impose sanctions up to removal from office. His election opponent is former public defender April Van Dyke, who is run on a platform of “promoting equality, inclusion and honesty” in the courtroom.