10 Philadelphia judges, including state Supreme Court Justice Seamus McCaffery accused of ticket fixing.
As many as 10 current or former Philadelphia judges, including state Supreme Court Justice Seamus McCaffery, could face state disciplinary proceedings following an investigative report on Philadelphia Traffic Court.
The list includes three sitting Traffic Court judges; five who no longer hear cases or have been suspended from the Traffic Court bench; one Municipal Court judge, Joseph J. O'Neill Sr., who successfully appealed a red-light ticket; and McCaffery, whose contact with the Traffic Court's director of operations about a ticket for his wife was questioned.
"Judges alleged to have engaged in unethical or inappropriate conduct have been referred to the Supreme Court and the Judicial Conduct Board," consultant William G. Chadwick wrote in the conclusion of his 35-page report. The report, set up by Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille, was submitted last week to Gary S. Glazer, the Common Pleas Court judge now in charge of Traffic Court operations.
The Judicial Conduct Board was created in 1993 to consider complaints about ethical misconduct by judges. Its operations are confidential, but its basic procedures are not. Its chief counsel directs a preliminary review of any complaint. The 12-member board then decides whether to authorize a full investigation.
After a full investigation, the board would either dismiss the complaint or file formal charges, to be tried publicly before another agency, the Court of Judicial Discipline.
Despite a Supreme Court rule that Traffic Court judges "shall not allow their family, social, or other relationships to influence their judicial conduct or judgment," Chadwick's report alleged that the court had established actual procedures for providing "special consideration" for the favored few.
Every judge at Traffic Court participated in the practice, Chadwick concluded, either dismissing tickets or downgrading violations to protect the offender's driving record.
Chadwick said the practice was confirmed by 22 court employees who consented to interviews. "These practices violated established standards of conduct for the minor judiciary," Chadwick wrote.
"You'd be surprised at how many complaints are filed," Stretton said. "It doesn't necessarily take a whole lot to resolve them."
Bruce Ledewitz, a professor of law at Duquesne Law School, said "there's probably a file open on half the judges in Philadelphia at any one time."
http://articles.philly.com/2012-11-28/news/35412838_1_traffic-court-municipal-court-court-of-judicial-discipline