Fa'amomoi Masaniai Reprimanded

Fa'amomoi Masaniai, a King County District Court judge in Washington, was reprimanded by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct after investigators found he engaged in a pattern of inappropriate personal conduct toward a court clerk in May 2023. According to the Commission's stipulation, Masaniai invited the clerk to his chambers on May 5, 2023 and offered her a massage; three days later, he asked her for a hug that the Commission's order describes as turning into a "full body embrace," with his hand resting low on her back. The Commission found Masaniai violated the Code of Judicial Conduct by initiating an inappropriate personal relationship with a court clerk that included unsolicited communications about personal matters via phone and text message, and unwanted hugging, without regard for the power imbalance between a judge and a member of his own court's staff. The interactions left the clerk shaken and led to her reassignment away from him. The Commission ordered Masaniai to complete remedial training on sexual harassment and gender dynamics, in addition to the public reprimand; he remains on the bench.