Martha Cannon Adams Reprimanded

Martha Cannon Adams, an Orange County, Florida judge with 17 years on the bench, was publicly reprimanded by the Florida Supreme Court for a pattern of "biased, impatient, undignified, and discourteous behavior" toward staff and management of the Ninth Circuit State Attorney's Office. The parties agreed Adams directed unprofessional remarks at assistant state attorneys — including calling one an "ass" — and threatened to disrupt the life of a State Attorney's Office employee. Adams also suggested to others that the State Attorney's Office was plotting to have her removed from the bench, and said she would need to rule more harshly as a result of that belief. The Supreme Court noted that conduct like this typically warrants a stricter penalty, but cited Adams's lack of any prior disciplinary history, her expressed remorse, and written apologies to those affected as mitigating factors in settling on a public reprimand.