US Attorney for Alaska Faces Scrutiny After Judge’s Sex Scandal

The judicial panel findings of sexual misconduct that forced federal judge Joshua Kindred of Alaska to resign this past July have prompted challenges of dozens of cases he ruled on. The fallout from the judge’s sex scandal has also prompted scrutiny of S. Lane Tucker, the US Attorney who prosecuted the cases, writes Bloomberg Law’s Ben Penn.

Kindred’s resignation followed an 18-month investigation. He was found guilty of creating a hostile work environment, sexually harassing his clerk, and receiving nude photos from an unnamed federal prosecutor.

Tucker wasn’t named in the report but her office prosecuted the cases under review. She is also facing separate complaints that question how her office dealt with the allegations leading to the judge’s sex scandal.

Kindred’s ex-law clerk told the US Office of Special Counsel that Tucker retaliated after she reported the judge’s behavior, and public defenders are asking the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s inspector general to investigate alleged ethical breaches at the prosecutor’s office. The IG referred that complaint to the DOJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility.

Following Kindred’s resignation, internal reviews were launched by both the US attorney’s office and federal public defenders to address undisclosed conflicts. Prosecutors have already revealed 43 cases, and defense lawyers are reviewing many more.

Former Alaska’s US attorneys Robert Bundy and Karen Loeffler expect the  Office of Professional Responsibility to investigate the US attorney’s office. They said that will inevitably include an examination of what Tucker knew, when she knew it, and how she responded.

According to the Bloomberg Law article, spokespersons from both investigative agencies declined to comment or acknowledge their inquiries.