Don Bourne Suspended Removed

Don Bourne, a Pope County (Russellville, Arkansas) District Court judge, was suspended without pay for 90 days (with 75 of those days held in abeyance for one year, contingent on completing remedial conditions) after the Arkansas Supreme Court found he made demeaning comments toward Spanish-speaking defendants and to defendants not originally from Pope County. Documented examples included Bourne telling Spanish-speaking defendants to "learn English" if they were "going to be in this country, county, [or] city," and telling one defendant to "go get a job, and get that crap out of your eyebrows."

The court also cited negative comments Bourne made to unrepresented defendants about their appearance, background, residency, and ethnicity, supported by witness accounts and video evidence. The Arkansas Supreme Court additionally barred Bourne from ever holding judicial office again after his current term expired at the end of 2024.