Judge accused of asking colleague to have threesome with her and pastor
Dawn Gentry faces allegations of giving favouritism in exchange for sex and money
A family court judge is under investigation after being accused of having a threesome at work and asking a colleague to have group sex with her and a former pastor.
Dawn Gentry, from Kentucky, US, is facing nine misconduct charges and is accused of giving favouritism in exchange for sex and money.
The judge is alleged to have made unwanted sexual advances towards a female lawyer and to have asked her to seduce her then-husband and to have a threesome with her former pastor and current case specialist Stephen Penrose.
After the alleged incidents, the lawyer quit a panel she was on with Ms Gentry, which gives free help to abused children, according to her witness statement, seen by The Cincinnati Enquirer.
The judge allegedly fired another lawyer from the panel because he did not donate enough money to her campaign to be re-elected as family court judge in 2018.
And she is accused of forcing out another worker, who also did not “sufficiently support” her campaign, to replace her with Mr Penrose, according to a list of charges filed by the Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission.
The charges allege she hired Mr Penrose because she was “in a personal sexual relationship with him” rather than “based on merit”.
She is also accused of engaging in sexual activity with Mr Penrose and her female secretary in her courthouse chambers during regular work hours.
Ms Gentry is also accused of keeping false timesheets and allowing employees to drink alcohol at work and to play guitar and sing in the office.
She denies the majority of the allegations, including that she had a sexual relationship with Stephen Penrose or her secretary.
However she admitted that Mr Penrose used to play guitar at work occasionally; that she appointed acquaintances to the permanent custody roster; that she brought her children and let staff bring their children to work in emergencies and that one child saw a confidential proceeding; and that she, her staff attorney, her secretary and her case specialist would go out to lunch together leaving the office unattended.
The judge is expected to face a disciplinary hearing, however a date has not been set.
Stephen Ryan, who is representing Ms Gentry, told The Independent she had declined to comment.