GALVESTON — The Florida judge presiding over a criminal case against U.S. District Judge Samuel B. Kent issued a gag order Monday, preventing anyone involved in the case from talking about it publicly.

Galveston County Daily News

Federal Judge Samuel Kent has been indicted on three charges of sexual harassment.

U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson’s order accused Kent, his former case manager and accuser Cathy McBroom and their attorneys of trying to manipulate media coverage and taint the jury pool.

The order also allows Vinson to hold hearings on the case in closed chambers and forbids court personnel from disclosing what happens during those hearings.

Kent, 59, faces two counts of abusive sexual contact and one count of attempted sexual abuse based on allegations McBroom made against him last year.

Kent pleaded not guilty to the charges. Kent’s attorney, Dick DeGuerin, said last week he would take the case to trial and not accept any plea deals because his client is innocent.

But even if Kent were convicted of the sex charges he was indicted on last month, it would take more than that to remove him from the bench.

Kent will continue to preside over cases unless Congress impeaches him or the 5th Judicial Council places him on leave. Federal judges are appointed for life, and only Congress can remove them. In that process, the House of Representatives votes on whether to impeach a judge. If the House votes to impeach, the Senate votes on whether to convict and remove a judge from office.

The last federal judge to be impeached, U.S. District Judge Walter L. Nixon of Mississippi, continued to draw his judge’s salary while he was imprisoned after being convicted of perjury. The process of impeaching him stretched on for months. Nixon was impeached by the House of Representatives on May 10, 1989, and not removed from office by the Senate until Nov. 3, 1989.

Before Kent faced any such hearing before Congress, the House Judiciary Committee would have to decide to hear the case. In November, when details of McBroom’s allegations were made public, the committee issued a statement saying it would wait until the end of the Department of Justice investigation before deciding to take action.

Calls to the committee’s spokesman weren’t returned. It is not clear whether the committee plans to take up Kent’s case before the trial. If Kent is convicted, the committee’s statement said, “there is no doubt the committee will take action.”