NCJ Number
143733
Date Published
1993
Length
115 pages
Annotation
This annual report profiles the activities of the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct for calendar year 1992.
Abstract
The State Commission on Judicial Conduct is the disciplinary agency constitutionally designated to review complaints of misconduct against judges of the New York State unified court system. The commission's objective is to enforce the obligation of judges to observe high standards of conduct while safeguarding the independence of the judiciary. In 1992, 1,452 new complaints were received, compared with 1,207 the previous year. Of these, 1,272 (87.6 percent) were dismissed by the commission upon initial review, and 180 investigations were authorized and commenced; 181 investigations and proceedings on formal charges were pending from the prior year. As in previous years, the majority of complaints were submitted by civil litigants and by defendants in criminal cases. A total of 33 complaints involving 29 different judges resulted in formal charges being authorized; 11 complaints involving six different judges were closed upon the judges' resignation; 15 complaints involving 12 different judges were closed upon vacancy of office due to reasons other than resignation. This report provides details on cases that involved determinations of removal (two cases), determinations of censure (one case), and determinations of admonition (15 cases). Other activities reported are reviews of commission determinations by the Court of Appeals, challenges to commission procedures, specific problem areas identified by the commission, and the commission's budget. Appended rules governing judicial conduct, texts of 1992 determinations, and statistical analysis of complaints, along with 10 tables