Wayne County judge's colorful testimony chronicles steamy affair with witness
Judge Wade McCree testifies in Washtenaw Circuit Court before Judge Charles Nelson in Ann Arbor, Mich, on Tuesday, May 21, 2013. During his misconduct hearing, McCree talked about his affair with Geniene La'Shay Mott who appeared as a witness in a child-support case in his court.
AP Photo/The Detroit News, David Coates, Pool
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Wade McCree conceded this week that much of the affair he's on the hot seat for played out like "bad television," according to an MLive.com report.
McCree has been facing a misconduct trial all week in downtown Ann Arbor at the Washtenaw County Courthouse. The otherwise business-as-usual courthouse has been transformed into a verifiable media circus, with television and news organizations from all over the Detroit area converging on it to cover the sordid affair.
Judge Donald Shelton's courtroom has been commandeered for the proceedings, presided over by a retired Jackson County judge.
The allegations are that McCree presided over a steamy romantic entanglement with a female witness in his own Wayne County courtroom last summer. The Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission claims McCree had sex with Geniene La'Shay Mott in his chambers and "sexted" her from the bench.
MLive reports that at one point through their fling last summer, McCree attempted to flatter Mott by texting her this from the bench: "C’mon, U’r talking about the ‘docket from hell,’ filled w/tatted up, overweight, half-ass English speaking, gap tooth skank hoes ... and then you walk in.”
Geniene La'Shay Mott, former mistress of Wayne County Circuit Judge Wade McCree, walks to testify at Washtenaw Circuit Court in Ann Arbor during a hearing for McCree on Monday, May 20, 2013.
AP Photo/Detroit News, David Coates, Pool
As the relationship soured, Mott told McCree, who is in his 50s and married with children, that she was pregnant with twins. McCree said Mott told him she wanted $10,000 to terminate the pregnancy and that if he didn't file divorce papers against his wife, she would go to the media with the story, according to testimony this week.
McCree thinks the pregnancy announcement was an attempt to manipulate him. He even proclaimed himself as "the king of latex" in reference to his allegedly prodigious condom use, according to the testimony of an investigator with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.
McCree began his own colorful testimony Tuesday, which chronicled the wild affair from when they first met during the woman's child custody case to when Mott started calling his home at the end of the affair, MLive reports. McCree will retake the stand next week when the trial resumes Tuesday.
McCree also ran into trouble last year with the state Supreme Court for sending a shirtless photo of himself to a female court employee.
"Hot dog. Yep, that's me," McCree said when WJBK-TV showed him a printout of the photo, according to MLive. "No shame to my game."
Read more about the case and McCree's testimony in the MLive story.
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
Bamboozle62
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:48 a.m.
This is just so sad, no integrity at all.
PineyWoodsGuy
Thu, May 23, 2013 : 5:28 a.m.
I deeply respect his father, Wade McCree Sr, who did so much to advance the cause of civil rights for All citizens. This extremely tawdry and disgusting Soap Opera illustrates the difficulty of growing up in the shadow of a Legendary Father. The story that is unfolding is not about "libido run wild;" it is about the Very Sad story of a little boy lost in the darkness of his father's shadow.
BHarding
Thu, May 23, 2013 : 2:15 p.m.
That is a pitiful excuse. If you're being at all serious, I mean. He had a path cleared for him, a proud legacy to follow, but instead chose the path of least resistance. Let's say: no conscience in his game. Self respect has to be earned, and he couldn't be bothered.
Jaime Magiera
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 5:21 p.m.
"preclude" or "recuse"?
leezee
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 5:09 p.m.
Amid the sea of gap tooth skank hoes, I saw you and.....what....knew you'd found someone you could have an affair with? Just looking at this guy (with or without a shirt) makes me want to take a shower. I watched a bit of Mott's testimony earlier this week and came to the conclusion that the two of them are perfect for each other.
Lonnie
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 3:31 p.m.
In that first picture, he wears his wedding ring while talking about his steamy affair. I don't think you could print my words about him.
walker101
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 3:13 p.m.
"No shame to my game." What else can you say, at least he's honest.
Top Cat
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 3:11 p.m.
Somone of his integrity should be working for the Justice Department or the IRS.
justcurious
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 4:08 p.m.
Or maybe be President....(thinking of a recent one)....
trespass
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 2:16 p.m.
It sounds to me like he thinks he can get by with a slap on the wrist for this from the Judicial Tenure Commission. He seems to be freely admitting the affair and that she had a case before him. I would think that would be automatic dismissal and possible disbarment. What does that say about the judges respect for the Judicial Tenure Commission? John-how about some statistics on how often judges are found responsible and what punishment they get from the JTC? How many times have judges lost their seats because of misconduct?