Commission recommends Badgett’s censure

(The Pilot) - A Surry County District Court judge already under suspension has been recommended for censure stemming from a separate incident involving a Hispanic defendant.

The N.C. Judicial Standards Commission recently issued the recommendation for Judge Mark Badgett of Pinnacle, who hears cases in both Surry and Stokes counties. Badgett is completing his first four-year term as judge and is seeking re-election this fall.

That recommendation has been sent to the state Supreme Court, which in early March suspended Badgett and censured him for misconduct that included failing to disclose a business relationship with a Winston-Salem attorney whose cases were heard in Badgett’s court.