Updated Feb. 4:

The family of the judge sent this statement today: “Judge Brooks suffered a cardiovascular event last summer. He has not been medically cleared to work at this time and the family greatly appreciates all the caring concern that has been expressed by the public regarding this unfortunate event.”

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By Kathryn Reed

No one is saying why El Dorado County Superior Court Judge Nelson Brooks has not been to work for nearly six months.

Brooks did not return a call to Lake Tahoe News.

Nelson Brooks

Suzanne Thurman, court coordinator, told LTN, “He is out on leave.” She did not know how long he would be out of work.

The leave started Aug. 8.

Since then the county has relied on the assigned judge program through the Judicial Council, the reciprocal agreement with neighboring courts and having local judges fill in for Brooks.

Brooks was first appointed to the bench by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2009, and was elected a year later to a six-year term with more than 75 percent of the vote. He was re-elected in a bitter battle in June 2016. He had 58.53 percent of the votes, while his opponent Roland Thiemann had 41.16 percent. The race garnered statewide scrutiny because it is almost unheard of for a sitting judge’s colleagues to support a challenger.

Even though Brooks isn’t working, he was still sworn in this month for another term. And he is still collecting his full paycheck — $189,041 — at taxpayers’ expense.