NEW YORK (AP) – A New York Supreme Court judge has been transferred to a disciplinary committee and could be removed from the chair for not following a rule requiring proof of COVID -19 vaccination.
Judge Jenny Rivera, one of seven attorneys in the state’s Court of Appeals, has been banned from court and working remotely since October, court officials said. He was one of four judges nationwide who were transferred to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct for failing to comply with an order that applies to all court staff.
The Court of Appeals is equivalent to the New York Supreme Court.
“We made it clear from the outset that any judge who does not comply will go to the Judicial Conduct Commission for a decision,” court spokesman Lucian Chalfen said.
Asked about Rivera’s state, Chalfen said: “It doesn’t follow the court’s vaccination policy.”
“If this is true, any appeal is reserved under judicial law,” said Gary Spencer, spokesman for the Court of Appeals.
Rivera, who was appointed to the Court of Appeals by former Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2013, attended the hearings via video and questioned the lawyers through a large television monitor placed next to his roommates. court in Albany.
He was not present at the ceremony on Tuesday, which was attended by Governor Katie Hochley, which is celebrating the new judges of the Court of Appeals.
The New York State justice system requires all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, a policy it introduced last year. On March 21, the state judicial system notified 156 court employees that they were not eligible for work and he was fired if they did not submit proof of vaccination before April 4.
Chalfen said 103 of these employees were sent a letter of resignation, one resigned, 11 said they would retire, and 41 chose to serve their term and return to work.
This term does not apply to judges who can only be removed by the Judicial Conduct Commission. According to its database of decisions, the commission has never imposed a penalty or dismissed a Court of Appeals judge.
Rivera may continue to work as a judge until the commission process is completed. Deadlines for this process have not been published.
The Judicial Conduct Commission states on its website that all complaints will remain confidential until a public decision is made on a warning, censorship, removal or resignation of the judge, or if the appealing judge refuses to keep it. confidential.
The commission’s spokeswoman, Marisa Harrison, declined to comment.
Since its inception in 1978, the Commission has ruled on 912 cases, nearly two-thirds of which involved low-level city or village court judges. The commission rejected 176 judges and publicly criticized 342 judges. Another 114 judges withdrew or resigned because of the commission’s case.
Source: Huffpost
