Potter was known for sentencing convicted defendants to long terms at or near the maximum, a tendency that won him the nickname "Maximum Bob."[4] Potter was the presiding judge in the 1989 trial of televangelist Jim Bakker, who Potter sentenced to 45 years in prison for multiple fraud and conspiracy accusations (the jury was not allowed to see the Heritage USA apartment complex that was 90 days from completion). In passing sentence, Potter stated: "Those of us who do have a religion are sick of being saps for money-grubbing preachers and priests."[4] On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the conviction but vacated the sentence, holding that "Regrettably, we are left with the apprehension that the imposition of a lengthy prison term here may have reflected the fact that the court's own sense of religious propriety had somehow been betrayed. In this way, we believe that the trial court abused its discretion."[4]
In 1997, in the case of Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, Potter ordered the termination of desegregation busing of students in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, ruling that the district had achieved "unitary" status; i.e., that it had "eliminated, to the extent practicable, the vestiges of past discrimination in the traditional areas of school operations."[3] The decision was overturned by the Fourth Circuit in 2000.[5]
Other service
Potter was a longtime financial supporter of Christendom College. He raised funds for the college and was a member of its advisory board.[6]
