A local judge who was accused of making sexist and racist remarks before he won re-election has resigned.
Judge Mark Hulsey III, who represented Duval, Clay and Nassau counties in the Fourth Judicial Circuit, resigned Monday morning, according to court officials.
“The immediate effect of my resignation will not prevent the discharge of judicial work for the citizens residing in the Fourth Judicial Circuit,” Judge Hulsey wrote in his brief resignation letter to Florida Gov. Rick Scott. The letter did not say exactly why Hulsey stepped down.
On Tuesday, a Florida House committee planned to explore impeachment proceedings. A courthouse administrator said Hulsey's resignation is effective immediately and could not say why he resigned.
Action News Jax law and safety expert Dale Carson said Gov. Scott will have to appoint a replacement judge.
Hulsey was accused in July of inappropriate behavior toward staff and making derogatory comments about women and African-Americans, according to a report from the Judicial Qualifications Commission.
"Allegations of this nature tend to compromise someone's legitimacy on the bench," Carson said.
Hulsey denied the allegations that he said blacks should "get back on a ship and go back to Africa" and that he referred to women staff attorneys as being "like cheerleaders who talk during the national anthem."
A JQC spokesman tells Action News Jax the commission is still deciding if it will continue its investigation into Hulsey, adding that the JQC can only remove a judge from office for personal or ethical misconduct, but cannot pursue criminal charges.
Hulsey won re-election after a recount following last year's primary.
Meanwhile, the president of the Jacksonville chapter of the NAACP released a statement to Action News Jax on Monday.
"We don't know if the investigation will continue or not," chapter president Isaiah Rumlin said in a statement. "If those statements are true, then he did the right thing."
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