We don’t know about falling in love, but this judge couldn’t help dressing like Elvis Presley.
Matthew Thornhill has stepped down from the bench in St. Charles County, Missouri, after a state commission found he “failed to maintain order and decorum” by “routinely wear[ing] an Elvis Presley wig” around Halloween in the courtroom and his chambers.
Additionally, the state commission reported that Thornhill “would let litigants and/or witnesses select how they would be sworn in prior to testifying,” which included an option involving “playing Elvis Presley music from his phone,” referring to Elvis lyrics or facts about his life “when such statements were irrelevant to the proceedings before the court,” and playing Elvis music from his phone “while entering the courtroom and/or while on the bench doing court business.”
The report also includes allegations of non-Elvis-related behavior, such as referring to his political affiliations or own political campaigns in an inappropriate manner.
In response to the report, Thornhill submitted his resignation — though he missed an opportunity to say, “Elvis has left the building.”