The Docket — Issue 01
Four Complaints. Four Judges. One Pattern.
A weekly judicial accountability logic puzzle from Clutch Justice
Difficulty: Moderate
Week of: April 7, 2025
Category: Judicial accountability
How to play: Read the scenario and clues. Click any cell in the grid to cycle through Y (confirmed match), X (ruled out), or blank. Each judge has exactly one county, one complaint type, and one JTC outcome. When you have all four judges placed, click Check My Solution.
The scenario
Four Michigan judges each faced a complaint before the Judicial Tenure Commission last year. Each judge presided in a different county, each complaint alleged a different type of misconduct, and each case ended in a different outcome. From the clues below, determine which judge is from which county, what they were accused of, and how the JTC disposed of their case.
The clues
1
The judge from Washtenaw County was not accused of ex parte communications.
2
Judge Harlow's case was dismissed by the JTC. Judge Harlow is not from Kent County.
3
The judge accused of courtroom demeanor violations received a public censure.
4
Judge Crane is from Macomb County. Judge Crane's case did not result in a dismissal.
5
The Kent County judge was accused of case management failures, not demeanor violations.
6
Judge Merritt received a private admonishment. Judge Merritt is not from Genesee County.
7
The judge accused of ex parte communications is from Genesee County.
8
Judge Voss did not receive a public censure, and was not accused of case management failures.
9
The judge from Macomb County was accused of conflicts of interest.
10
The Genesee County judge's case resulted in a suspension, not a dismissal.
Your deduction grid
Key:
YConfirmed
XRuled out
?Unknown
The Docket publishes every Tuesday at 10:00 AM EST. Subscribe to Clutch Justice to get each new puzzle in your inbox.
From the editor
The patterns in these puzzles are fictional. The ones in Michigan's courts aren't. Rita maps those for a living.
