Terry Kilgore Under Investigation Yet Again

(reprinted with permission)

In Case You Missed It
Del. Terry Kilgore under ethical microscope... again

The Bristol Herald Courier reports this week:

"State Delegate Terry Kilgore's membership on a Virginia State Bar committee and loose disciplinary guidelines raise questions about who will determine whether he and a close associate violated the bar's rules.

An investigation into Terry Kilgore and Frank Kilgore is ongoing, the Herald Courier has learned, but bar complaints are confidential and officials would speak only in general terms about the disciplinary process." - "Probe Into Addition On Lawsuit Raises Questions Of Conflict," Bristol Herald Courier, 6/15/08

The complaint, filed against Del. Kilgore and attorney Frank Kilgore (not a relative), was first made in April 2007, and appears to be currently under investigation.

In another story printed the same day, the Herald Courier further explores the cozy relationship between the Kilgores, specifically a 2006 incident in which Frank Kilgore named Terry Kilgore as a client's attorney in order to delay the case through a privilege granted to state legislators. Del. Kilgore "never met with the client, performed any legal work for her, or signed his name to any of the court pleadings."  - "The Kilgores Share a Last Name, But They Trade Favors Like Family," Bristol Herald Courier, 6/15/08

Further:

"While chairman of the House's Judicial Selection Subcommittee - a role in which he brokered consensus on judicial candidates with Senate members - Terry Kilgore supported the appointment of Frank's wife, Teresa M. Chafin, as a juvenile and domestic relations court judge in 2002, and her elevation to circuit court three years later.

Frank gave Terry $11,000 during his 2005 re-election campaign, according to the nonprofit Virginia Public Access Project. Over the last decade, he has given more than $25,000 to Terry and his twin brother Jerry - the former state attorney general and unsuccessful Republican nominee for governor in 2005." [Bristol Herald Courier, 6/15/08]

This is hardly the first time Del. Kilgore has been accused of playing fast and loose with ethical guidelines. Earlier this year, the Herald Courier recalled a 1999 incident in which Kilgore elevated his former law partner, D. Gregory Baker, to a judgeship - ousting Judge Melanie Jorgensen in the process. Baker's father, the mayor of Clintwood, donated thousands of dollars to both Terry and his twin brother, Jerry Kilgore, before and after the appointment.

"Because of politics, I wasn't kept on the bench," Jorgensen said. "No one had more experience than I did." "Virginia judge-selection process linked to politics," Bristol Herald Courier, 3/30/08

Baker later resigned from the seat when it was revealed he had concealed a solicitation conviction before his appointment.

The Herald Courier also reported on several other judges with tight Kilgore ties "Political ties often key for attaining position on the bench," Bristol Herald Courier, 3/30/08:

• Joseph R. Carico, a circuit court judge in Wise, who worked for Terry Kilgore in 1994, while attending the University of Virginia's College at Wise. Carico later served as chief deputy to Jerry Kilgore, who in 2001 was elected state attorney general, and as a senior advisor on Jerry Kilgore's gubernatorial campaign.
• Michael Lee Moore, a circuit court judge in the 29th Judicial District and former Democrat, went to law school with Terry and Jerry Kilgore.
• Chadwick S. Dotson, a general district court judge in Wise, was a prominent conservative blogger, and donated $748 to Republican state candidates - including $550 to Terry and Jerry Kilgore - prior to taking the bench.
• John C. Kilgore, a circuit court judge in Scott County, is no relation to the delegate and former attorney general, but was an associate in the law firm of Terry Kilgore and Greg Baker, who later was appointed to a judgeship.
• Jeff Hamilton, a juvenile and domestic relations court judge in the 30th Judicial District, worked in former Democratic Delegate Ford Quillen's law firm. Hamilton met Terry and Jerry Kilgore when he hired them as basketball referees years ago and now considers them friends.

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Of course, it is of particular interest to those of us in the Virginia progressive blogsphere that the "Commonwealth Conservative" himself, Chad Dotson, is mentioned.  We always knew he was deeply connected in politics.  That goes without saying.  Before he joined the bench, Chad Dotson was always a worthy adversary online, it is inconceiveable that there could have been any wrongdoing involved in his appointment.  Smoke but no fire, I say.

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