A Louisiana judge’s career has come to an embarrassing and dramatic end after it was revealed that she repeatedly lied about her background, including making false claims about serving in a major U.S. war when she was still a teenager.
Tiffany Foxworth-Roberts, a judge in Baton Rouge, was officially removed from the bench by the Louisiana Supreme Court after an investigation into her conduct. The court voted 4–3 to strip her of her position, making her the first judge in the state to be removed in 16 years. The justices said her behavior showed a serious lack of honesty and accountability, which are basic expectations for anyone trusted to serve as a judge.
At the center of the case were claims Foxworth-Roberts made while running for office in 2020. During her campaign, she publicly said she was a military veteran who had taken part in Operation Desert Storm, the U.S.-led Gulf War that took place in the early 1990s. The problem with that claim is simple: she would have been only 16 years old at the time. Investigators later confirmed that she never served in combat and was never deployed overseas at all.
Despite this, her campaign ads showed her wearing military-style clothing and included statements suggesting she had been “on the front lines” and had answered the “call of duty.” She also claimed she had reached the rank of Army captain. When her military records were finally reviewed, they showed that she never achieved that rank and was honorably discharged after not being promoted.
At first, Foxworth-Roberts resisted releasing her military records. Once they became public, she tried to explain away the discrepancies by arguing that she played a role in Operation Desert Storm because she worked with veterans from the war at Walter Reed Medical Center. Investigators and justices rejected that explanation, saying it did not justify her claims of being a war veteran.
The investigation didn’t stop with her military story. Officials also found serious issues with an insurance claim she filed after a reported car break-in in 2020. She told police that about $40,000 worth of jewelry and valuables had been stolen. However, body camera footage showed that the details she gave officers did not match what she later told her insurance company.
According to investigators, Foxworth-Roberts told police the theft happened outside her home, but she told her insurer it happened miles away while she was out campaigning. She also listed different items as stolen, including an engagement ring that she never mentioned to police but added to her insurance claim. At one point, she even told investigators that she had never filed an insurance claim at all, only to later admit that she had submitted one through USAA.
The Judiciary Commission concluded that she admitted to making up her claim about being promoted to Army captain. However, they also said she continued to lie or mislead investigators during the process, especially about the insurance claim.
A retired judge who served as the hearing officer in her case said that Foxworth-Roberts had little credibility and repeatedly tried to avoid telling the full truth. He described her behavior as dishonest and misleading.
In their final ruling, the Louisiana Supreme Court said her actions raised serious doubts about her honesty and integrity, qualities the public has a right to expect from any judge. One justice wrote that instead of taking responsibility for what she had done, Foxworth-Roberts continued to offer strained explanations and excuses, showing little sign of remorse.
In the end, the court made clear that her pattern of dishonesty, both during her campaign and under investigation, left them with no choice. Her removal from the bench marked a decisive and public downfall for a judge whose career was built on claims that simply were not true.
