Candice Novak

Douglas County Separate Juvenile Court Judge Candice Novak received a public reprimand from the Nebraska Commission on Judicial Qualifications following a formal investigation into her conduct. During a juvenile truancy hearing, Novak slammed down her file, dismissed the attorneys, and abandoned the bench for approximately an hour. She told investigators she had spent that time consulting with a fellow juvenile judge — a claim that judge flatly contradicted under oath. Judge Novak lied to investigators.

The investigation further found that Novak obstructed the inquiry by refusing to comply with investigators' requests to produce her text messages — a deliberate act of obstruction from a sitting judge whose entire authority rests on upholding the rule of law. Those same text messages, obtained through other means, revealed a pattern of contempt for her colleagues: she referred to a fellow juvenile judge as a"bimbo," a former Chief Justice as a "snake," and a county court administrator as a"goober" and a "boob."

Juvenile court is not a routine docket. The children appearing before Judge Novak are often at a defining crossroads — many facing their last real opportunity for intervention and correction before a life defined by incarceration. These are troubled kids who deserve a judge of integrity and temperament.

A judge who abuses her position by berating and demeaning colleagues, who lies to investigators about her own conduct, and who actively obstructs an official inquiry into her behavior has demonstrated that she cannot be trusted with the authority she holds — particularly over the lives of vulnerable young people. The Nebraska Commission on Judicial Qualifications agreed, and issued her a formal public reprimand.