Jeff Ashton is accused of inappropriate behavior by the Judicial Panel

Orange County Judge Jeff Ashton behaved “inappropriately” during his tenure – yelling at people, showing bias toward some attorneys and behaving “in a manner that was not patient, dignified or polite,” according to the report state panel that investigates complaints about Florida judges.

Ashton, who serves in the 9th Judicial District and is running for re-election in November, must now respond to the charges filed this week by the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission. The commission is investigating complaints about judges and could recommend disciplinary action to the Florida Supreme Court for Ashton, who has been a judge for five years.

“Your repeated unwillingness or inability to control your behavior raises questions about your fitness to serve as a judge, and the above conduct constitutes inappropriate conduct,” the commission wrote in its notice.

Ashton is one of Central Florida's best-known legal figures, most notably for his role as a prosecutor in the 2011 Casey Anthony murder case, which garnered national attention. A jury acquitted Anthony of the charge of murdering her young daughter.

Ashton later served as Orange-Osceola's district attorney and then, after losing that job, won a seat on the bench in the 2018 election. He has been a judge ever since.

As of Wednesday's notice, Ashton has 20 days to file a written response to the allegations. He did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.

The Judicial Commission cited a “pattern of misconduct,” including an instance in which he yelled at a lawyer and accused him of “provoking” his “angry face,” and other instances in which he showed bias toward certain lawyers.

The commission also noted that it had previously “warned” Ashton, saying he should not “allow himself to be provoked into excessive behavior by what you perceive to be unprofessional conduct by lawyers or parties,” noting that he was “recorded shouting down a lawyer” who appeared before him. The commission said this case will now be reopened.

Ashton was one of three candidates for the judge's seat in the August primary election, where none of the candidates received the 50% majority needed to win.

Orlando-area attorney Alicia Peyton received 48% of the vote, 31% for Ashton and 20% for Chris Mack. Peyton and Ashton will now face each other in a runoff election in November.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Originally published: October 3, 2024 at 3:21 p.m