Sarasota Circuit Judge Thomas Krug was cited for careless driving and leaving the scene of an accident following a same-direction sideswipe on Fruitville Road on Aug. 25, according to Sarasota Police records obtained through a public records request. Krug has not been criminally charged. He later told police he didn’t think he had been in a crash.
Body camera video obtained by ABC 7 shows the woman who says her car was hit. The case has sparked questions about how judges are held accountable when they break traffic laws, and whether incidents like this affect public confidence in the courts.
Loyola law professor Dane Ciolino weighed in, noting that Florida judges face an added ethical obligation to preserve public confidence in the judiciary. He said a judge can get a traffic ticket just like anyone else, and that while leaving the scene raises significant questions, it is not conduct that warrants removal from the bench. What do you think? Should judges face consequences beyond a citation, or is this simply a traffic matter handled like any other?
