Judge Accused of Affair Says He'll Resign if Re-Elected

A longtime Royal Oak judge accused of having an affair a staffer is expected to step down if he’s re-elected Tuesday to head off a disciplinary action on allegations he gave the woman special treatment.

The Daily Tribune reports that 44th District Judge Terrence Brennan, who has been on personal leave since Oct. 8, faces a write-in challenge from Royal Oak City Commissioner David Poulton.

Brennan took the leave after the city was notified that the State Court Administrator’s Office, the administrative arm of the Michigan Supreme Court, was investigating Brennan in part because of allegations of an intimate relationship between the judge and the staff member, according to a memo written by City Attorney David Gillham.

WDIV, Channel 4, said the staff member is negotiating a settlement agreement so she can move on with her life, but questions linger about whether their alleged relationship compromised any decisions in the courtroom.

The court’s investigation will end if Brennan steps down.

“At this point, rather than contest the charges, the judge has agreed to ... request a paid administrative leave through the end of the year, and ... assuming that he is re-elected ... notify the Governor that he will be retiring at the beginning of 2015,” Gillham said in the memo to Royal Oak officials. “In exchange, formal disciplinary action will not be taken against him by the Judicial Tenure Commission.”

Poulton, an attorney, said he decided to run in part of save Royal Oak a judge’s seat. If Brennan wins and resigns, a state court reorganization plan to combine the Royal Oak and Berkley court district in 2020 would be accelerated, and the two districts would be served by one judge beginning in January 2015.

“After looking at the state law I realized that unless we had someone willing to serve a full term and not resign, Royal Oak was going to lose a judge’s seat,” Poulton said. “The person elected [Tuesday] will serve the city until that person resigns or doesn’t seek re-election.”

As he ramps up his write-in campaign to defeat Brenna, Poulton is asking questions about Brennan’s timing.

“... If the judge has an intention to resign, why not resign before the election?” Poulton asked. “Why resign only after being elected – there must be a reason.”

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Screenshot: WDIV video