An appellate court has ruled that a judge was wrong to "friend" on Facebook a woman whose divorce case the judge presided over.
The 5th District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach last week ruled that Judge Linda Schoonover should not have sent a Facebook friend request to Sandra Chace when the judge was still presiding over Chace's divorce case.
Chace didn't respond to the request on the advice of her attorney. Chace claims the judge retaliated against her by ordering her to pay her ex-husband a high amount of alimony and assume most of the marital debt.
Chace had requested that Schoonover disqualify herself from the case, and the appellate court agreed.
The appellate court said such actions by a judge can undermine the judge's appearance of impartiality.
