The Florida Supreme Court said Thursday that a Seminole County circuit judge should be publicly reprimanded for not being candid about a traffic ticket she received on the way to an interview with a judicial nominating commission.
In announcing the decision, the Supreme Court approved an agreement between Circuit Judge Jessica Recksiedler and the state’s Judicial Qualifications Commission aimed at resolving the matter.
The seven-page Supreme Court decision said Recksiedler was questioned about her driving record in March 2013 when she was interviewed by the 5th District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission.
A year later, as she drove to another interview with the judicial nominating commission, Recksiedler was stopped by the Florida Highway Patrol and was issued a speeding ticket. The traffic stop caused Recksiedler to be late for the interview.
During an opening statement to the judicial nominating commission, Recksiedler addressed the concerns raised in 2013 about her driving record but did not inform the commission that she had received a speeding ticket that same day.
The Judicial Qualifications Commission later found that Recksiedler violated the code of judicial conduct, which was the basis of the Supreme Court’s decision Thursday.
“Candor as a judge is clearly critical,’’ the Supreme Court decision said. “The JQC determined that Judge Recksiedler’s lack of candor may not have been ‘intentionally false’ but it was ‘confusing and misleading.’ “