Montgomery County judge gets approval for back pay

Montgomery County commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved back pay for County Judge Craig Doyal for the 36 days that he was suspended without pay by a state agency.

Doyal abstained from voting on the motion, which was offered by Precinct 1 Commissioner Mike Meador.

The State Commission on Judicial Conduct had suspended Doyal on June 28 after he and three others, including Commissioners Jim Clark and Charlie Riley, were indicted on misdemeanor charges of holding secret deliberations regarding a $280 million road bond measure that passed last fall.

Doyal and others have denied the charges. Doyal’s supporters argued that the commission had no authority to suspend him, because the Montgomery County judge has not performed any judicial duties for years. The state panel later agreed to amend the suspension to effectively let Doyal return to work and collect a paycheck. Bill O’Sullivan, treasurer of the Texas Patriots, a local tea party group, spoke in support of the back pay and suggested that the county try to get the state panel to pay Doyal’s salary for those 36 days; it amounts to between $15,000 and $20,000, Doyal confirmed.

Echoing some outraged Doyal supporters, O’Sullivan called the suspension a “travesty” and said the commission acted like “ready, fire, aim.”

The commission takes no position on restoring back pay after a suspension is amended, according to Seana Willing, the commission’s executive director.

“It is the Commission’s position that this matter should be handled locally,” Willing wrote in an email. “We are not aware of any legal authority that addresses the issue of back pay in this situation. It’ll be up to the County’s legal counsel and the voters to sort it all out.”