A Michigan federal judge convicted of driving while intoxicated will remain on paid leave for another year and undergo treatment for alcohol use disorder as part of an agreement resolving judicial misconduct complaints.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Ludington, 72, of the Eastern District of Michigan, will also face regular and random alcohol testing once he returns to the bench. Under the terms of the resolution, he will move to senior status — a form of semi-retirement for federal judges — when his leave ends in September 2027.
Ludington has been away from the federal bench since February, following his arrest over a drunken-driving incident in northern Michigan.
The disciplinary matter was resolved in an order issued by Chief U.S. Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, who oversees judicial misconduct complaints within the circuit.
Ludington will continue receiving his federal judicial salary, which is close to $250,000 a year, throughout his leave.
The case drew renewed attention after police body-camera footage from the October 2025 traffic incident was released publicly. Sutton noted that the footage had been viewed more than one million times on YouTube, saying its circulation had consequences for public confidence in the judiciary.
The misconduct proceedings included a complaint initiated by Sutton and another filed by Gabe Roth, who leads the judicial reform organization Fix the Court.
Roth described the eventual resolution as fair but criticized the length of time it took to reach an agreement.
The underlying incident occurred on October 3, 2025, when Michigan State Police responded to a report of a Cadillac striking two road signs in Gaylord before continuing down the road.
A trooper found Ludington inside the heavily damaged vehicle. The judge told the officer he was unsure why the vehicle’s airbags had deployed and initially denied drinking after getting out of the car.
According to the police report, Ludington subsequently failed several field sobriety tests. During one test, he was asked to recite the alphabet but instead gave an incomplete sequence.
A blood test later recorded his blood-alcohol concentration at 0.27, more than three times Michigan’s legal limit of 0.08.
Ludington pleaded no contest to operating a vehicle while intoxicated in April. A state court later sentenced him to six months of probation.
Sutton’s order said Ludington has acknowledged that alcohol consumption had become a problem in recent years. His lawyer said the judge was ashamed of his conduct and accepted responsibility for the incident and the embarrassment it caused the judiciary.
According to Sutton, testing has shown that Ludington has remained sober since February.
Ludington’s leave and treatment arrangement will keep him away from active judicial duties until September 2027, after which he is expected to assume senior status.
