Tag: gaming

A judge in Bristol, Virginia, has abandoned his seat after it came to light that he’d been a constant video gaming companion of a man he’d sent to jail at least three times over the years.

The gaming friendship Judge Joseph R. Carico, had with Jeremy Hubbard, came to light after a late-night car crash last year that hospitalized Hubbard. Carico swerved to avoid a deer on Nov. 22 and smashed into a tree. Of course, as Hubbard’s past came to light, the story about their gaming habits came out. The two talked about their enjoyment of games during a happenstance meeting at a restaurant where Hubbard worked. That led to many game sessions that got so serious, the two thought about forming a competitive gaming team along with some of Hubbard’s neighbors. Which is something that even I haven’t considered doing.

Of course, because gaming is such an honorable past time, Carico prosecuting Hubbard on a drug charge in 2003 is just water under the bridge. Now, there’s nothing necessarily wrong with being gaming BFFs with a felon … unless you’re a judge, where it raises questions of propriety and conflict of interest. Carico hasn’t stuck around to answer them. He’s bolted his seat, leaving the other judges to pick up his case load, and isn’t answering calls for comment. Eep.