A job description County Judge Curtis Parrish provided in 2019 to a now-former county employee said in part, “If requested to do something immoral, call the judge’s wife.”
The former employee is one of three women who have accused Parrish of unwanted sexual advances and non-consensual touching. Parrish denied the claims, calling them false and preposterous.
Lubbock Report acquired a copy of the job description and asked Parrish about it on a text thread.
“I wrote it,” Parrish wrote back.
Lubbock Report asked if it was filed as a serious document or intended to be humor.
Parrish did not respond.
In the same text thread, Lubbock Report gave Parrish an opportunity to discuss concerns about employee morale raised by county commissioners. Parrish did not comment on morale or statements by two commissioners who think he should resign.
Parrish’s former employee said, “It bothered me. … To me, he was already setting the stage and anticipated doing something immoral and even unethical.”
Lubbock Report previously identified the employee by the name “Jaylyn” when we broke the story that three women, not just one, were coming forward with claims against the judge.
The first was Susan Rowley, justice of the peace for Precinct 2, who did so in a video posted to the Lubbock Lampoon Facebook page. The other two asked Lubbock Report to not use their real names – which we explained in our previous coverage.
Text of the job description.
Lubbock County Court Coordinator
Job Description
The Lubbock County Court Coordinator assists the Lubbock County Judge.
Job duties involve anything the judge requests as long as it is not illegal, unethical, or immoral.
- If requested to do something illegal, call the Sheriff.
- If requested to do something unethical, call the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.
- If requested to do something immoral, call the judge’s wife.
‘A little shocked’
“The one that really stuck out to me the most was if requested to do something immoral, call the judge’s wife. Like, who says that?” Jaylyn said.
The job description from Parrish was not dated and not signed.
Parrish handed her a printed copy along with another printout of job-related paperwork effective January 1, 2019 and signed/dated January 2, Jaylyn said.
“That really is not a job description. Period. There’s no duties. It doesn’t list out anything as to my responsibilities or expectations or even minimal requirements for that position,” she said.
The timeline:
- She went to work for the county in 2014.
- She took over responsibilities for the county judge’s office in 2017 (under Tom Head’s administration).
- Technically, she was still under the Office of Court Administration.
- Parrish won election in November 2018 and took office in January 2019.
- Jaylyn’s position was then realigned (in January 2019) to report directly to Parrish.
- She was terminated in July 2022, which we described in more detail in our previous coverage.
Jaylyn provided a copy of her previous job description before Parrish won election for the first time. The document read much like a typical job description in a government office.
For example, it said in part, “The [Administrative Coordinator] will coordinate the daily court activities for the County Judge, providing guidance and direction on docket management, including the monitoring and prioritization of cases.”
It included more than 30 bullet points of specific and detailed “essential duties” – filling nearly three full pages.
Lubbock Report asked Jaylyn about her reaction to getting Parrish’s job description.
“I was a little shocked. That’s what it boiled down to, because previously it was very detailed and then it just got very vague,” she said.
“To me it was very unprofessional, kind of like he was just throwing his weight around like, ‘I can do what I want,’” she said.
Jaylyn was given two weeks’ notice of her firing on July 5, 2022 with last day of work on July 15.
Related Stories
- Two more women come forward accusing Judge Parrish of sexual misconduct, which he calls ‘false’
- Two commissioners call for judge to resign amid ‘toxic’ Lubbock County work environment
- County judge wrote unusual job description in 2019 with instructions in case of illegal, unethical or immoral behavior
Reaching out to local attorneys
Lubbock Report reached out to numerous local attorneys to ask for analysis of the job description.
Some felt unqualified to analyze employment law as it relates to an elected official. Others said they have probate cases before Judge Parrish. They felt like commenting would put them in conflict with Parrish.
Because Parrish did not answer when asked if the document was officially filed or given only to the employee and “intended to be humor,” Lubbock Report made an open records request. If the job description was officially on file, Lubbock Report will follow up.
