U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (D - Birmingham) said she will begin the impeachment process against U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller (Middle District of Alabama) who is charged with domestic violence, according to Politico.
In her Op-Ed piece for Al.com, Sewell stated that Alabama is in the top five states with the most women killed by their male partners.
"I cannot battle violence against women while turning a blind eye to Judge Fuller," Sewell wrote. "Should he not resign prior to Congress' return to Washington on November 12, I will institute impeachment proceedings. This process will be long, and it will be daunting. Even more daunting, however, is the crisis of domestic violence. Even more embarrassing is our society's silence about this preventable epidemic."
Sewell first called for Fuller to resign on Sept. 10 and she was joined shortly after by republicans and democrats in Congress. "Congress is the only body that can remove Judge Fuller from the bench should he not resign," Sewell wrote.
Fuller's attorney, Barry Ragsdale, claimed that Fuller's brand of violence doesn't compare to the issues the NFL has highlighted in the media. "It got caught up in the Ray Rice and NFL scandals, and it's gotten lumped into a category of domestic violence that I don't think it belongs in," Ragsdale said according to Politico. "There was not a beating, kicking or slapping in this instance."
Decaturish cited the police report of the call made to the Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta on Aug. 9. According to Decaturish, the room smelled of alcohol and the judge was laying on the bed when his wife answered the door. His story was that she threw a glass at him after accusing him of cheating and he grabbed her hair in self-defense. Her story was that after the confrontation, her husband threw her down, dragged her by her hair, kicked her and repeatedly hit her in the mouth.
Police found shattered glass on the floor of the hotel along with strands of hair, according to reports. The judge's wife also had cuts on her face and bruises on her legs. The police noted the judge had no marks, according to Decaturish.
This is not the first time the judge has been accused of domestic violence. Fuller requested that his divorce from his first wife, Lisa Boyd Fuller, be sealed "as it allegedly contained 'accusations of domestic violence, drug abuse and the judge's alleged affair with his court bailiff,'"according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
The charge filed by Fulton County police records reads, "Battery Substantail Physical Harm - Family Violence (1st Offense) Misd."
"On average, nearly 20 people per minute are victims of physical violence by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men," according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
And domestic violence isn't just perpetrated against women. While one in three women have experienced domestic violence, one in four men have experienced the same, according to the NCADV.
"Judge Fuller's high-profile position does not shield his victim from the emotional and physical violence he inflicts upon her and any legal immunity he is granted is a violation of justice," Sewell wrote in her opinion piece. "There is no treatment or counseling program that can resurrect what Judge Fuller has compromised as one who sits in the judgment of others."
