Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez of Bexar County, Texas, has agreed to resign following charges of unlawful restraint and oppression levied against her earlier this year.
This indictment was sparked by a complaint filed in mid-2025, which claimed that Speedlin Gonzalez exhibited unprofessional behavior, threatened to insult a defense attorney, and instructed a bailiff to handcuff the attorney and confine him to the jury box. An agreement signed by Speedlin Gonzalez on April 17th formalizes her resignation.
In a statement to the New York Post back in January, Gonzalez described herself as a “proud public servant” and shared aspects of her identity, emphasizing her rights to protect herself. She expressed a belief that as long as she was “walking in righteousness” with God, she’d be okay.
Media outlets reported that details of the case involved a disagreement between Speedlin Gonzalez and attorney Elizabeth Russell, where the judge accused Russell of coaching her client during questioning. Additionally, four other charges were outlined against her. These include allegations of unprofessional treatment toward criminal defendants and not addressing motions to change bond terms and habeas corpus in a timely way. Other complaints accused Speedlin Gonzalez of misusing her judicial power by issuing “no contact” orders to court officials and limiting interactions with certain court personnel.
Prior to the indictment, Speedlin Gonzalez had been on the bench since 2018 and was seeking a third term, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Speedlin Gonzalez has drawn negative attention previously as well. She received a public warning for applauding a lawyer’s courtroom victory on her official Facebook page and faced another warning after displaying a pride flag in her courtroom.
The resignation agreement noted that the judge had been suspended without pay in February due to the indictment. By signing the agreement, she will formally step down from her judicial position, be permanently barred from judicial service, and will not be allowed to undertake any judicial duties.
Interestingly, while she is prohibited from performing judicial roles, the agreement does allow her to officiate weddings, as long as she doesn’t wear a robe or reference her judicial role during the ceremony. Importantly, signing the document does not imply any admission of guilt or wrongdoing on her part.
