Going My Way?

The New York Commission on Judicial Conduct has censured a village court justice

The charges

Charge I of the Formal Written Complaint alleged that on April 11, 2017, after presiding over the arraignment of E B in the Ellenville Village Court, respondent offered to give, and then gave, Mr. B a ride to Mr. B ’s residence. Charge I further alleged that on April 18, 2017, respondent presided over and disposed of Mr. B ’ case, without disclosing to the prosecution that he had given Mr. B a ride home after the arraignment and without offering to recuse himself. Charge II of the Formal Written Complaint alleged that in October and November 2018, in People v. Laquisha Brown and People v. Aljenia Douglas, respondent failed to advise the unrepresented defendants of the right to have counsel assigned by the court and otherwise failed to comply with requirements of the Criminal Procedure Law in connection with those matters. Charge III of the Formal Written Complaint alleged that on August 7, 2018, respondent summarily directed that a man be removed from the courtroom based on the man’s attire without giving him the opportunity to be heard.

The ride came after a grand larceny arraignment during which Mr. B disclosed that he was a professional musician

After the arraignment, while still at the court, respondent engaged Mr. B in a conversation about music and the musicians with whom Mr. B had performed. Respondent then offered to give Mr. B a ride to his residence, which Mr. B accepted. Respondent drove Mr. B to his residence in the Village of Wurtsboro, Sullivan County, which was on respondent’s way to Middletown in Orange County, where he planned to go shopping. Respondent and Mr. B continued to converse throughout the car ride, which lasted approximately 15 minutes.

The attire incident

respondent summarily directed the removal of a man from the courtroom for wearing a sleeveless t-shirt, without giving the man an opportunity to be heard as to his attire or ascertaining his purpose for attending court, and notwithstanding Section 4 of the Judiciary Law, which provides that the “sittings of every court within this state shall be public, and every citizen may freely attend the same.”

Sanction

In accepting the jointly recommended sanction of censure, we have taken into consideration that respondent has admitted that his conduct warrants public discipline, that his failures to comply with the Criminal Procedure Law appear to have been isolated incidents and that he has taken corrective action by appointing a public defender for unrepresented defendants at arraignment and by taking steps to ensure that defendants understand the consequences of proceeding without counsel. We trust that respondent has learned from this experience and in the future will act in accordance with his obligation to follow constitutional and statutory mandates and abide by the Rules Governing Judicial Conduct.

Respondent has been a judge since 1993. (Mike Frisch)