The first set of complaints against Thomas included allegations that he helped his cousin, former school board member David Thomas Jr., substitute a week-long criminal sentence in the overcrowded Metro Jail for the less-crowded Prichard Jail.

After the change in jail venue was exposed, David Thomas was forced by Circuit Judge Joseph "Rusty" Johnston to spend another week in jail, this time at Metro.

Those complaints and others resulted in Judge Thomas' suspension from the bench earlier this year.

A second wave of ethical questions against him appeared in the summer -- bringing the number of complaints to 30. The later allegations accused Thomas of usurping cases from his fellow judges on the circuit bench and, in some cases, changing sentences to less severe penalties.

Changing sentences to less severe penalties, without more, isn't necessarily unethical.  Except, it would seem, in Alabama.

In many places that's the level reform has to take, not just replacing Repubs with Dems or vice versa.

 The NAACP is supporting Circuit Judge Herman Thomas, who is accused of paddling jail inmates in his office. At a morning news conference, the Mobile, Alabama chapter of the NAACP called for a Department of Justice investigation and alleges District Attorney John Tyson of coercing information from inmates. NAACP President Jimmie Gardner says inmates who thought they were attending a court hearing for their own case, were instead interrogated by D.A. John Tyson without an attorney present and promised lighter sentences in return for information. Gardner calls the interrogations a "violation of civil rights", and claims one inmate, in a letter to his attorney, claims he knows nothing about paddling incidents.

The Mobile Press-Register is reporting Thomas is accused of periodically removing prisoners from Mobile County Metro Jail and spanking them in a room at the courthouse. According to the Press-Register, once inside the room, the judge would ask the men to drop their pants and prepare to be spanked with what was described as a wooden paddle. Judge Thomas told the Press Register that he did not have any comment on the allegations. Sources also say that between six to 12 men have shared their accounts with investigators.

  A primer: When Republicans do something bad it is because Republicans are evil. When it appears that a Democrat might have done something wrong it's almost always a GOP dirty trick engineered to fool people.