A judge from Oklahoma was detained in Austin, Texas, this week after it was reported that he fired shots at parked cars while driving, hitting at least one of them, and purposely rammed into a woman’s car. She had cut him off, and he subsequently admitted to the police. These claims have caused the judge to be suspended from hearing cases. The 58-year-old judge has been identified as Brian Lovell.
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Who is Brian Lovell?
Brian Lovell, an associate district judge in Garfield County, Oklahoma, was taken into custody for reckless driving, a misdemeanor on September 11. A grand jury has been presented with a felony count of using a handgun in lethal conduct for review. Lovell was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation and released on a bond of $10,000. He has been removed from hearing cases as a result of the arrest.
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As reported by NBC, a witness called police just after 4 p.m. on September 11 to say that a man had fired “approximately five times while driving down the street,” striking at least one of the parked cars, according to an Austin police affidavit. A woman claimed a man intentionally struck the rear of her car twice less than 2 miles from the gunshot location. Police were called to the scene of the incident around 90 minutes later.
The affidavit stated that Lovell and his SUV fit the shooter’s description. Despite admitting their cars had collided, he told police he thought the woman had cut him off in traffic and “did not admit the collisions were intentional,” the report stated.
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According to the affidavit, Lovell admitted to having two handguns in his car but said he “did not know why he would have shot his gun” and “could not recall any part of the shooting incident.”
Lovell agreed to refrain from judging over any cases until his own case is settled, according to Paul Woodward, the sitting administrative judge for the Garfield County district.