Judge faces scrutiny over anti-immigrant articles he shared on Facebook, including one by Holocaust denier
Photo by Seasontime/Shutterstock.com.
A criminal court judge in Memphis has said he can be fair and impartial in court despite sharing anti-immigrant articles on Facebook, including an article by a Holocaust denier that called Muslim immigrants “foreign mud.”
Judge Jim Lammey told the Memphis Commercial Appeal that his posts became public in early February after he accidentally switched his Facebook settings. He said he doesn’t see how sharing the articles would impair his ability to be a fair judge, according to the newspaper (here, here and here) and WREG.
The article by Holocaust denier David Cole said liberal Jewish people have supported Muslim immigration, acting like people in Jewish folklore who created mud monsters called golems that are dangerous and difficult to control. The article also said Jewish people should “get the f- - - over the Holocaust.”
Lammey posted a comment with the article that read “Interesting read. Some four-letter words, though.”
Lammey also shared Facebook posts that portray immigrants as welfare abusers who wrongfully vote in federal elections, according to the Commercial Appeal.
Lammey said he doesn’t agree with Holocaust denial, and he didn’t agree with everything in the “foreign mud” article. “I thought it was interesting about creating man-made monsters,” he told WREG.
He also told the Commercial Appeal that he admires Latino immigrants, many of whom are Catholics like him. He said a Latino work crew once did work on his roof, “and they’re hell of good workers.”
He expressed concerns that Muslim immigrants may want to impose Islamic law. “I just can’t see the logic in bringing in people who want to change our laws,” he said.
The Facebook posts have led to calls for Lammey’s resignation. Latino Memphis, an advocacy group, said it would file an ethics complaint and seek a review of his cases to determine whether immigrants were treated fairly.
Lammy requires some immigrants to register with federal immigration authorities as a condition of probation. He told the Commercial Appeal that the order is justified because probation orders require people to obey all laws. He has imposed the condition about 20 times, he said.
A Tennessee appeals court is currently considering an appeal by a Latino man who objected to the reporting requirement.
