Broward Judge Faces Suspension After DUI Incident

By Jonathan Blecher on September 3, 2015

A Broward County circuit judge agreed to a 90-day suspension without pay as a disciplinary measure for driving under the influence of Ambien, a prescription sleep aid.

Judge Lynn Rosenthal was charged with DUI after an incident on May 27, 2014. The accident occurred at Broward County
Courthouse, where the judge clipped a deputy’s marked cruiser. Rosenthal claimed to have accidentally overdosed on a prescription sleep aid the night before.

Florida’s Judicial Qualifications Commission is responsible for overseeing any allegations of a judge’s misconduct. After reviewing the facts of the judge’s case, the Commission submitted its recommendation to the Florida Supreme Court on Aug. 18, the Sun Sentinel reported.

The filing shows that Rosenthal will be subjected to family counseling, 12 hours of legal ethics training and a public reprimand.

After reviewing the facts of the case, the panel determined that Rosenthal provided satisfactory and credible evidence that her physician prescribed an incorrect dose of the prescription sleep aid Ambien CR. The charge against Rosenthal was ultimately reduced to reckless driving and she entered a no-contest plea, CBS Miami reports.

The Judicial Qualifications Commission did have an issue with her actions, including how she refused to submit a urine or blood sample during the arrest, her misleading or incomplete statements, and how records were erased from her cellphone, according to the documents filed with the Supreme Court.

Rosenthal ultimately entered into an agreement with the panel, in what is known as a “stipulation,” which recommended that the Supreme Court hands down a reprimand and a 90-day suspension. All that’s left now is for the Supreme Court to approve the agreement.

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