Monroe County District Court judge accused of hiring prostitutes

MONROE — A Monroe County District Court judge accused of hiring prostitutes was arraigned Friday, according to Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette.

Judge Jarod Calkins

Judge Jarod Calkins, 41, of Carleton, Mich., is charged with one felony count of transporting a person for the purposes of prostitution as well as four misdemeanor counts of hiring women for the purpose of prostitution following an investigation by the Michigan State Police, according to the attorney general’s office.

The felony transportation charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Judge Calkins was arraigned Friday in the 1st District Court, with bond set at $25,000. No further court dates have been set as of Friday afternoon.

The investigation started after state police were told of “prostitution-related activities” at a Monroe Township hotel, according to the attorney general’s office. Investigators learned a person matching Judge Calkins’ description met women at the hotel for sex in exchange for money, according to a press release.

According to the criminal complaint, Judge Calkins set up accounts on the dating app Tinder, dating website OkCupid, and on Facebook to meet women for sex. He told them he wanted to be their “sugar daddy,” and said he would provide gifts and money in exchange for sex.

He also discussed engaging in BDSM, or bondage, sadism, dominance, and masochism, and women described to police violent sex acts that sometimes ignored the women’s boundaries, according to the criminal complaint. 

The transportation charges are related to Judge Calkins using his Uber account to pay for the women to meet him in Monroe County.

The criminal complaint details sexual encounters in exchange for money with three women, each involving violent sex. One of the women said Judge Calkins ignored a safe word and instead hit her harder, and said that he “treated her like a ‘slave,’” according to the complaint.

A fourth woman went to meet Judge Calkins at the Baymont Hotel in Monroe Township, but she was confronted by hotel management about prostitution activity at the hotel. Judge Calkins told her not to talk to anyone, including police, and asked her to delete evidence of their correspondences, according to the criminal complaint. 

Another of the women told investigators she told Judge Calkins she didn’t want any money, but that he insisted and put $100 in her purse.

“Public officials must be held to a higher standard, and I will continue to work with law enforcement to ensure that we hold accountable anyone who violates the public trust,” Mr. Schuette said in a statement. “I applaud the work done by the Michigan State Police and my Public Integrity Unit who put a stop to activities that violate the public trust.”

According to the district court website, Judge Calkins received a bachelor of education and his law degree from the University of Toledo. He was elected in 2014.

Contact Nolan Rosenkrans at nrosenkrans@theblade.com, 419-724-6086, or on Twitter @NolanRosenkrans.