Arkansas Supreme Court sanctions Pulaski County circuit judge over ruling on guns in courthouses.

The Arkansas Supreme Court on Friday rebuked Pulaski County Circuit Judge Morgan “Chip” Welch for violating rules of the Code of Judicial Conduct that require judges to promote confidence in the judiciary, demonstrate impartiality and act without bias.

The written admonishment comes in the form of an unsigned order that requires Welch to take a six-week online judicial ethics course by the end of July plus complete another three hours of ethics training before October. . . .

“Labeling and referring to an opinion by the Supreme Court of Arkansas as ‘LOCO’ erodes public confidence. His written opinion stating that the Supreme Court’s opinion ‘creates a new class of unlicensed, heretofore untrained, armed lawyers in courthouses of the State’ also erodes public confidence. To suggest that this court created a class of armed lawyers is dangerous, and it undermines the public’s understanding of the judiciary’s role,” the order states. “We interpret laws, we do not make them, and Judge Welch’s suggestion to the contrary damages the public’s view of the separation of powers and the role of the judiciary.”

The LOCO label was found to be a violation of Rule 2.3, a prohibition against showing bias or prejudice. The order invokes a ban on negative stereotyping while noting his duties include conducting commitment hearings in mental-health court.

“[We] think he should be more circumspect with his word choice. Using the Spanish word loco, meaning crazy, cavalierly referring to another court’s judicial order in a joking manner exceeds the bounds of appropriate judicial behavior. And when given an opportunity to respond, to admit only that he should have had better editing skills, suggests a lack of judicial maturity and reflection,” the order states.

Further, judicial code Rule 2.2 regarding impartiality and fairness was violated when Welch “made it clear in his written order that he disagreed with this court’s interpretation of the statute and with the statute itself. His opinion was sprinkled with disparaging remarks about the court’s interpretation of the statute.” . . .

The gun issue was before the high court as a result of a 2022 lawsuit by three lawyers, Chris Corbitt, Ben Motal and Robert Steinbuch, who argued that Act 1087 of 2017, codified as Arkansas Code 5-73-122, allowed lawyers as “officers of the court” to carry handguns into the state’s courthouses and courtrooms. Welch dismissed the suit in March 2023, leading to the appeal that brought the issue to the Supreme Court this year.