• Deal ends judge’s career after series of controversial courtroom actions
• Famous for wearing an Elvis Presley wig and playing his songs in court

A Missouri judge, known for wearing an Elvis Presley–style wig and playing his music during court sessions, has agreed to a deal that ends his judicial career early.

Judge Matthew Thornhill of St. Charles County Circuit Court faces a six-month unpaid suspension under the deal he reached with a state board to avoid a disciplinary hearing.

After the suspension, he will remain on the bench for 18 more months before resigning.

Beth Riggert, spokeswoman for the Missouri Supreme Court, said the agreement reached last month is currently under review by the court, which on Thursday approved the submission of 35 letters supporting Thornhill’s character.

Thornhill explained that he intended “to add levity at times when I thought it would help relax litigants,” but later acknowledged that his conduct could affect the “integrity and seriousness of court proceedings.”

The Commission on Retirement, Removal and Discipline noted that Thornhill sometimes discussed politics from the bench, but highlighted his repeated Elvis-related behavior first, such as wearing the wig around Halloween and playing music while entering the courtroom or when witnesses took the oath.

He also sometimes mentioned song lyrics or Elvis’s birth and death dates, even when irrelevant to the cases.

The commission stated that all these actions violated rules requiring the maintenance of “order and decorum” and promoting “confidence in the integrity of the judiciary.”

Thornhill is the longest-serving judge in St. Charles County and a former assistant prosecutor there. He was elected associate circuit judge in 2006 and circuit judge in 2024, with his primary assignment in family court.

His record also includes a 2008 reprimand and $750 fine for misusing his authority in a previous case.

In the latest instance, he was also criticized for mentioning his political affiliation and preferred candidates during court proceedings and for submitting a character letter in an adoption case, which was deemed an abuse of his position. Thornhill admitted that it was “a mistake and improper.”