SAN FRANCISCO — A Fresno County judge facing disciplinary charges for improperly ordering an acquaintance released from jail is still fighting to keep his job, notwithstanding a report from a panel of California judges urging leniency.
Superior Court Judge James Petrucelli is charged with willful misconduct, the gravest judicial offense. His case received a boost in April when an appointed panel of special masters recommended the charge be reduced to prejudicial misconduct. The panel concluded that Petrucelli hadn’t realized he was behaving improperly when he aided a personal acquaintance who had been arrested on suspicion of felony spousal abuse.
