Oakland County Probate Judge Kathleen Ryan was removed from her docket position on August 27th, 2024, for an “unspecified misconduct,” later specified in media reports and recordings in early September.
Chief Probate Judge Linda Hallmark removed Kathleen Ryan from her designated docket because of a “complaint regarding internal allegations of unprofessional conduct” sent to the Judicial Commission right after the incident. In the recordings, Hallmark says Ryan was using “racist and vulgar language” while trying to help a family with issues regarding estates and a family will from a recently deceased family member. Ryan was accused of making racist/homophobic anti-gay statements about African Americans. Many of them explained how Ryan thought African Americans were lazy or not “put together” enough or organized at all. English teacher Gabrielle Buttazzoni supports Judge Hallmark’s decision to remove Ryan from her docket position.
“We’re seeing the consequences of the actions she has made as part of the docket affecting people in the community in a very negative way, I think that that was the right choice to remove her,” said Buttazzoni.
Ryan targeted multiple of her colleagues with these vulgar statements like Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter, who is gay himself. In an article published in The Detroit Free Press by David Laytner on September 6th, 2024, Coulter explained Ryan’s statements’ harsh impact, many depended on her to act fairly and hold an unbiased opinion.
“There is absolutely no place for harassment of any kind or for racist or homophobic language by anyone in Oakland County,” he said. After Dave Coulter opened up about how Ryan’s comments affected him, others who worked with Ryan started speaking about how they felt about her and her statements.Ryan had harassed Probate Court administrator Ed Hutton for years before anyone noticed. Hutton was afraid to lose his job, and he didn’t want to be on Ryan’s bad side. Hutton built up the courage to send in recordings of Ryan, showing Ryan harassing him on the phone for months outside of the office. In a WXYZ Detroit article published by Heather Catallo on September 5th, 2024. Hutton sends in his complaints about Ryan’s phone calls.Hutton told state and county leaders in an email that Ryan has “vocalized her hate and contempt for various projective groups…I don’t want to lose my job, I just want to do the right thing.” Buttazzoni explained how important it is for people to speak out against injustice rather than operating in fear.
“It’s more about confronting it head-on,” she said. “I think that a lot of issues occur when people are afraid of judgment and are afraid to hold conversations because they can be quite difficult to have, and I think that the way that we’re going to get past that is by confronting what we see in front of us and unpacking that together and look for a solution.”
Ryan has served on the probate court since 2010 and has practiced law since 1996. She was arrested for a misdemeanor of domestic violence in 2021, but dismissal of these charges allowed her to continue in her role on the Probate court. Also, in the WXYZ Detroit article, Attorney General Dana Nessel talks about the specific values and the future portrayal of the court bench because of Ryan’s statements.
“Prudent judgment [is an] essential value our state judges must exercise. Ryan’s past misdemeanors and current allegations “[portrayed] a grave failing of those values from [the] probate court bench,” she said.
This case has changed the court’s future safety and questioned the court’s authority meaning new guardianship reforms will be reviewed for effect. David Woodward, on the county board of Commissioners, received copies of Ryan’s recordings in early September. In The Detroit Free Press by David Laytner on September 6th, 2024, Woodward explained how he felt about the lost qualities of a judge and the judicial system going forward.
“Such language demeans the robe, corrupts the judiciary, and erases the trust in our legal system,” he said.
Buttazzoni encourages people to maintain heightened awareness and challenge a system where judges are not carrying out their responsibilities with fidelity and integrity.
“People need to recognize and be aware of these historical impacts and how things from 100 years ago, 50 years ago, 20 years ago, have created systems of injustice,” she said. “We need to be perceptive so that we can challenge those things and provide equal opportunities to all persons regardless of race, regardless of sexuality, regardless of however, many other factors.”
