Federal judge blasted for commenting critically on Trump's public statements in hush money case

Federal Judge Reggie Walton spurred controversy last week for taking aim at former President Donald Trump's comments on judges overseeing his criminal cases, but the jurist's remarks are drawing criticism of their own, given his involvement in hearing Jan. 6-related cases, as Fox News reports.

As The Hill explains, Walton, based in Washington, D.C., where Trump is facing criminal charges, sat for an interview with CNN's Kaitlan Collins, and that is when he made what many view as inappropriate and incendiary statements about the former president.

Specifically, Walton addressed remarks made by Trump about the Democratic political connections of the daughter of Judge Juan Merchan, currently presiding over the former president's “hush money” case in New York state court.

Walton opined, “It's very disconcerting to have someone making comments about a judge. And it's particularly problematic when those comments are in the form of a threat, especially if they're directed at one's family.”

Referencing what he described as threats that have been directed toward himself and his family, Walton added, “We do these jobs because we're committed to the rule of law and we believe in the rule of that and the rule of law can only function effectively when we have judges who are prepared to carry out their duties without the threat of potential physical harm.”

“I think it's important that, as judges, we speak out and say things in reference to things that conceivably are going to impact on the process, because if we don't have a viable court system that's able to function effectively, then we have tyranny,” Walton added.

Seemingly referencing Trump, Walton went on, “So, I think it's very important that people in positions of authority be fairly circumspect in reference to the things that they say, so that they're not causing others to act on what they say and maybe cause injury or death to someone as a result of that.”

Walton's comments, however, have since drawn intense criticism from legal experts who have labeled them “inappropriate,” given the fact that Trump is currently a defendant in a matter set to be tried within the judge's own district.

Fox News legal editor Kerri Kupec Urbhan opined, “Judge Reggie Walton is a sitting federal judge in a district where Donald Trump is currently a criminal defendant with an active case,”

“He should not be publicly commenting in media interviews on anything related to him, full stop,” she went on.

Urbhan added, “This is yet another example of a lack of regard for the appearance of fairness when it comes to Donald Trump, which, whether you like Trump or not, flies in the face of what judges and the justice system are supposed to be about.”

Joining in those sentiments was John Shu, a constitutional law authority with experience in the administrations of George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.

“It's unseemly for Judge Walton to publicly discuss Trump or a Trump case, regardless of which one, because one of Trump's active criminal cases is in Judge Walton's court, the federal district court in D.C,” Shu said.

He also took aim at Collins, saying, “it seems that the interviewer wrongly conflated Trump's harsh social media critiques about Judge Merchan and his daughter – which probably fall within First Amendment protections – and the awful, actual threats that Judge Walton and his family faced, which are considered criminal behavior and thus not protected speech.”