CHARGES SUSPENDED AGAINST A.V. JUDGE.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Daily News Staff Writer

State judicial officials have admonished Antelope Municipal Court Judge Pamela Rogers for taking too long to decide seven cases but suspended charges regarding her use of prescription drugs.

The state Commission on Judicial Performance will dismiss charges alleging Rogers' misuse of medications after she successfully completes a 20-month monitoring period during which she must submit bimonthly medical and attendance reports, records show.

``Commission staff may monitor respondent by court observation. If, during the monitoring period, respondent appears impaired in the performance of her judicial duties by her use of medications, the conditionally dismissed charges may be reinstated, and new charges may be filed,'' a commission ruling stated.

The commission issued its decision Thursday, settling a case in which Rogers faced charges that she had misused prescription drugs and mismanaged court time.

Rogers said she was exonerated by the commission's ruling and said there was no evidence of abuse of drugs, addiction or dependency.

``I'm very pleased, in the face of all the allegations, that the truth came out. Counts one and two (concerning her use of medications), just as the commission indicated, were unfounded, malicious and false,'' Rogers said Friday.

She stressed that if she complies with the conditions set forth during the 20-month period, the commission will dismiss those charges with prejudice, meaning it can no longer act on them.

The charges were brought in January after a yearlong investigation by the commission, which stated in documents that Rogers, from the bench and in chambers, exhibited ``slurred and rambling speech, appearing to speak to an empty witness stand, emotional liability, poor short-term memory and other bizarre conduct.''

Commission documents also indicated that Rogers had been dependent on prescription drugs, including narcotics, from before her term in office in January 1995 through at least April 1997. The drugs included Demerol, Inderol, morphine and MS Contin.

In addition to her drug use and judicial performance, Rogers took more than 90 days to hear seven cases, ``constituting inordinate delay,'' officials said.

As part of the settlement, Rogers admitted to the charge that she failed to rule on the seven civil cases submitted to her in 1996 and 1997 within 90 days, as required by law.

Rogers consented to the sanction of admonishment for ``inordinate delay in deciding seven submitted matters within 90 days, constituting improper action.'' The ruling noted that Rogers at the time had taken on additional Superior Court duties in addition to her Municipal Court work.

``It clears her of any wrongdoing. And the truth is that the judge changed doctors, stopped taking narcotic drugs and went into an entirely different kind of treatment on her own. She did that two years ago,'' said Rogers' attorney, Ephraim Margolin. ``The result is complete vindication on everything other than the seven (case) 90-day issue.''

Under the settlement, the charges regarding the use of prescribed drugs will be dropped if Rogers submits medical reports regarding her medical condition and treatment, indicating all medications prescribed, and judicial attendance records every other month through July 1, 2000.

``There has been no reported occasion of respondent appearing to be under the influence of medication at work since April 1997. It appears that respondent has remedied the underlying medical problem that gave rise to the present allegations involving her use of medication,'' the ruling said.

The ruling said that all drugs taken by Rogers were medications prescribed for her by doctors for serious medical conditions, principally migraine headaches.

Rogers said the drugs were used because of complications from pregnancy and an estrogen imbalance, which eventually required a hysterectomy. She said she has suffered from migraines since adolescence.

Rogers acknowledged that she used medications prescribed by her doctors which, prior to April 1997, included narcotics.

``There is a risk of dependency in using some of these medications, even upon prescription. Such dependency could be inconsistent with the responsibility of a judge,'' the ruling said.

Rogers, however, ``has sought and received expert medical assistance in order to manage her condition without narcotics. As a result, at least since April 1997, all medications prescribed for and used by respondent have been non-narcotic, and her medical condition now appears to be under control with the help of exclusively non-narcotic medication,'' the ruling said.

In a 25-page response to the commission in February, Rogers denied she misused prescription drugs or mismanaged her court time. Rogers said her use of prescription drugs to combat migraines never ``substantially'' interfered with her judicial duties, and that she hadn't used prescription narcotics since April 1997.

Rogers' answer to the commission included the assertion that state civil rights laws prohibit taking action against a person for ``real or perceived disabilities,'' such as migraines or medications taken to control them.

The judge's answer also said that her medical problems were related to her gender, and thus action against her is prohibited by federal sex-discrimination law.

Rogers denied she was ever addicted to drugs, but she spent 28 days in April and May 1997 having her medications re-evaluated at Scripps Memorial Hospital during a five-week leave of absence from the bench. The stay was to gain access to services for pain management, Rogers said Friday.

Rogers added she spoke toward an empty witness stand in an effort to project her voice toward the court reporter, who sits next to it.

In April 1997, attorneys participating in a preliminary hearing for a Lancaster mother who was charged with leaving her mentally retarded 9-year-old son to die in a mobile-home fire said Rogers was often tardy, made rambling statements and seemed to slur her words.

After a hearing that lasted more than a week, Rogers dismissed the charges. A week later she took the five-week leave of absence.