A Texas judge was reprimanded Monday for a Facebook comment left on a police department's Facebook page about the arrest of a black man accused of killing a white San Antonio Police Department officer.

"Time for a tree and a rope...."

That was the complete comment from Judge James Oakley of Burnet County that appeared below the police department's announcement on Facebook that the agency made an arrest in November in connection to the death of officer Benjamin Marconi. The Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct opened proceedings after 18 complaints were made about Oakley's comment on the arrest of Otis Tyrone McKane, whose case is pending.



The commission released its findings on Monday and noted that the judge's defense is that he was trying to be funny. "Judge Oakley explained that a 'tree and rope' was a reference to the humorous advertising campaign for Pace Picante Sauce salsa from the 1980s," the commission noted (PDF). One of Pace's commercials ended with an old-West cowboy saying "get a rope after a cook attempted to substitute salsa made in New York City instead of San Antonio, Texas.

In the end, the commission concluded that the judge violated a judicial cannon demanding that judges act impartially. The agency mandated that the judge take four hours of racial sensitivity training and 30 hours of judicial training.

"The commission concludes from the facts and evidence presented that by posting the Facebook post, Judge Oakley cast reasonable doubt on his capacity to act impartially in the performance of his duties," the commission wrote.

The judge apologized. He said he immediately deleted the comment because it was "off the cuff" and "indeed curt and harsh."

"It is for that reason that I deleted it soon after posting and apologize for not being more thoughtful and comprehensive in my expression," Oakley told the American-Statesman in November. "What I should have posted, if anything, is a comment that more clearly reflects my opinion on the cowardly crime of the senseless murder of a law enforcement officer."

A screenshot of the Facebook comment likely brought more publicity to Oakley's actions. A Texas reporter, James Walker, got the screenshot, which was then widely distributed online.

Burnet County, with a population of 45,000, is about 50 miles northwest of Austin, Texas.