Judge says he won’t recuse himself from Parker’s DUI case just because they’re Facebook friends

    When does a Facebook friendship become a conflict of interest?

    Not when you’re a judge and your “friend” is a state legislator charged with DUI, says Municipal Court Judge Charles Hayden. Yesterday, Hayden refused to recuse himself from State Rep. Cherelle Parker’s DUI case just because the two are Facebook friends.

    The Attorney General’s office has asked Hayden to recuse himself after he had dismissed the evidence against Parker and the office realized the two have an online friendship. District Attorney Seth Williams first recused his office because of a real friendship with the legislator.

    Parker’s attorney says the friendship doesn’t necessarily present a conflict of interest. So what does?

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    Feed the Feed: Does an online friendship taint a legal case? Should it?

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