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Judge Karen Fort Hood: "You want to be fair."
Judge Karen Fort Hood of Detroit becomes the first Black woman to chair the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission, a state agency that addresses allegations of judicial misconduct.
Hood, a state Court of Appeals judge since 2003, was elected by the commission Monday to a two-year term. Hood in 2017 joined the unpaid panel of judges, attorneys and people from other professions.
"Regardless who you're judging, you want to be fair and impartial," said the 67-year-old.
The nine-member commission reviews alleged judicial misconduct, then makes a recommendation to the Michigan Supreme Court, which issues a final determination on whether to take action.
In 2002, Hood became the first Black woman on the Michigan Court of Appearls. Before that, she was elected to the Recorder’s Court Bench in 1992. In January 1999, she became presiding judge of Wayne County Circuit Court's criminal division.
Before becoming a judge, she was a assistant Wayne County prosecutor.
