Amber Givens says misconduct fight will make her a stronger Dallas district attorney

Amber Givens, the former Dallas County district judge who is expected to become the county's next district attorney, says her experience being accused of wrongdoing will ultimately make her a stronger and more empathetic prosecutor. 

In an exclusive interview, Givens described the last six years as a difficult period. 

"For six years, allegations were used in an attempt to diminish my integrity," she said, referring to the period as a journey, saying she spent the time "fighting for what I knew was the truth."

Earlier this year, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct reprimanded Givens over accusations that she allowed her court coordinator to impersonate her and make rulings during a 2021 online hearing. A three‑judge Special Court of Review appointed by the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court cleared her of wrongdoing and removed the reprimand from her record.

"The commission needs to make sure that they operate in fairness and no one is able to use them as a political tool," she said.

Her attorney, Chip Babcock, said she was targeted by trial lawyers who wanted her off the bench. 

"And then they filed hundreds of recusal motions in an attempt to catch her ruling on something she had been recused in, so there was certainly a concerted effort to go after her. I thought it was unseemly," Babcock said.

Givens' successful appeal comes as she prepares to take over the district attorney's office after defeating incumbent John Creuzot in the Democratic primary last March. With no Republican opponent in November, she is positioned to assume the role in January.

She said she will not hold grudges against attorneys who testified against her.

"Not bitter at all. Definitely grateful because at some point God has showed me that he was allowing it to happen because there was purpose in it," Givens said.

She said that the purpose was to understand what it feels like to be accused. 

"To be the person accused of something gives you a whole different perspective," she said, adding, "It showed me how horrible it is when a system is used as a weapon against people."

Givens also said she has received hateful messages, including racist language. 

While the Special Court of Review cleared her, it also described her as a polarizing figure. 

"At every turn we won, but in all of those battles that were won, there was always a personal dig," she said. "You look at me with my shaved sides, and maybe I look like a judge, maybe I don't, but there's a dog whistle there that she's unprofessional."

Joking, she said, "I'm probably going to get some shirts to say 'I'm polarizing.'"

As she prepares to take office, she said she will give everyone a fresh start. 

When asked whether she would walk into the office offering a clean slate, she responded, "No baggage ever, everything is grounded in gratitude. I didn't get this far being bitter, nasty, hateful because if I didn't like what I've been through, I wouldn't be here."