State investigation results in complaint against Dale County judge

A Dale County judge presiding over cases in juvenile court, often involving child abuse or neglect, is the subject of an 85-page complaint, citing he failed to uphold his duties as a judge.

The Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission, a council of nine members created to investigate allegations of misconduct by Alabama judges, filed a complaint against Judge Stuart K. Smith, claiming a pattern of violating judicial ethics since he took the bench in 2017. 

The complaint spanned hundreds of cases, from juvenile dependency and termination of parental rights to civil, small claims and child support enforcement cases. 

According to the complaint, these delays have “burdened the litigants, attorneys, families, children, foster parents and relative caregivers in these cases,” and undermined public confidence in the judicial system.

When the investigation began in May 2023, Smith had over 300 cases on his docket. As of March 2024, there were still over 300 cases on his docket. No initial order had been filed for 60 of these cases.

The complaint describes how Smith failed to follow the Alabama Juvenile Justice Act when he delayed court proceedings, dismissed juvenile cases without appointing a guardian and was unable to conduct permanency hearings for children in foster care promptly, sometimes going over a year without ruling on motions or issuing orders.

Smith presides over cases required to review dependency hearings within six months of the petition, and all transfer hearings within nine months. If a child has been detained or removed from the home, judges must expedite that timeline.

Smith also failed to file mandatory six-month reports with the Alabama Administrative Office of Courts, writing only three of the twelve expected between 2017 and 2024. 

He is charged with multiple violations of the Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics, as his work has “degraded the public’s confidence in the integrity of the judiciary and brought the judicial office into disrepute,” the complaint states. 

Unless an agreement is met, a trial date will be set to determine whether to charge Smith.