Ex-Arkansas judge pleads no contest, gets four years probation for failing to file tax return

Saline County Circuit Court Judge Bobby McCallister, 53
Saline County Circuit Court Judge Bobby McCallister, 53

Former Saline County Circuit Judge Bobby McCallister was sentenced Tuesday to four years of probation after pleading no contest to one count of failure to file a return.

McCallister, 53, was also ordered to pay a fine of $1,500 and to file state tax returns for 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016 within 120 days of sentencing, according to records in Saline County Circuit Court.

He waived his jury trial, which was set to begin Tuesday before appointed Circuit Judge David Laser.

McCallister initially faced four counts of felony tax evasion after reportedly failing to file or pay state income taxes for those years. Each charge carried a possible sentence of up to six years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Last month, McCallister reached an agreement with the Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission to leave his office effective Dec. 15. He was first elected judge in 2008 and won re-election in 2014.

McCallister earned an annual salary of $160,000 beginning in 2009, records show.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson appointed Barbara Womack Webb, 60, to replace McCallister earlier this month. Her term began Monday.

Webb, formerly head of the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission, will serve until Dec. 31, 2018, and earn a $160,000 annual salary.

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Information for this article was contributed by John Moritz of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

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