The Alabama Ethics Commission found probable cause Wednesday that longtime Cullman County District Judge Kim Chaney violated the state’s ethics law and referred the case to the Alabama Attorney General’s Office for review.

A Birmingham attorney representing Chaney, Augusta Dowd, denied the allegations, which state officials declined to release Wednesday.

Executive Director of the Alabama Ethics Commission Tom Albritton confirmed Chaney violated the state’s ethics law but did not comment further on the allegations in the complaint.

Chaney has been district judge since 1993 and is currently in his fifth term.

An Alabama Attorney General’s Office spokesman Mike Lewis declined to comment on any pending ethics investigation Wednesday.

The Times called Chaney for comment, and its message was returned by his attorney, Dowd, who is the new president of the Alabama Bar Association.

“Judge Chaney is a man of great integrity and honesty, and I’m confident once the full facts are out in front of the appropriate law enforcement agency, he will be cleared and exonerated,” she said. “He has served the state of Alabama for 25 years.”

Dowd noted that probable cause is a low burden of proof. The state ethics law prohibits a public official or employee from using their position to benefit personally, including any family member.

Attorney General Steve Marshall has 180 days of receiving the case to inform the ethics commission whether he intends to take action, including an administrative disposition or settlement, conduct further investigation, or close the case without taking action, according to the ethics law. If the attorney general decides to pursue the case, he may inform the commission of the final disposition.

Chaney has previously served as president of the Alabama Juvenile Judges’ Association, Alabama District Judges’ Association and Alabama Association of Drug Court Professionals.

He also is credited with helping start the Cullman County Community Corrections program and Boot Camp Wilderness program for delinquent youth and has recently spearheaded the county’s Human Trafficking Task Force.

• Made $152,836.46 in FY 2017.
• Will be state’s longest serving district judge in 2018.