NJ judge accused of asking a woman in court why she didn't 'close her legs' to stop a sexual assault

[Sugar Cookie]

A New Jersey judge accused of asking a woman in court why she didn't 'close her legs' to stop a sexual assault will have his own hearing this week.

A committee on judicial conduct in Trenton will consider the case of state Superior Court Judge John Russo on Wednesday.

Russo is accused of making the comment in 2016 to a woman seeking a restraining order against a man she accused of forcing her to have sex.

A complaint filed in March also accuses Russo of other conduct violations. Russo has been on administrative leave since last year.

According to a complaint filed against him by the The Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct, he asked her: 'Do you know how to stop somebody from having intercourse with you?"

'Yes,' the woman responded.

'How would you do that?' Russo said.

When the women said she would 'tell them to stop', short of physically harming the rapist, he asked what else she could have done to stop it, allegedly saying: 'Close your legs? Call the police? Did you do any of those things?'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...sey-judge-hearing-improper-comment-woman.html

 

[Siobhan]

What an embarrassment to the judiciary.
The next time he's in a court of law, I hope he's the defendant.

 

[Snoods]

So if a woman doesn’t have thighs of steel she is complicit in her own rape? Hey ladies, just keep your whore legs closed if you don't want to get raped!



!

 

[Sejanus]

POS scumbag

 

[Satanica]

He should have praised her for taking action and trying to prevent further attacks. But, no, he's one of those authoritarian patriarchal types. He would probably give her jail time and let the rapist walk. Twisted.

 

[cubby]

They need to give him a lesson in keeping his legs closed, lets find a man bigger, heavier, and stronger than he is and see how long it takes him to get his closed legs open. Yeah I think he might shut his stupid mouth. But then maybe not.

 

[JackBurton]

What a surprise, a white judge in America showing zero regard, sensitivty, or respect for victims of sexual assault.

 

[Sugar Cookie]

@Satanica @cubby

An ethics committee has recommended a three-month, unpaid suspension for a New Jersey judge who told a sexual assault victim to 'close your legs'.

The committee released its recommendation to the state Supreme Court on Wednesday in the case of Superior Court Judge John Russo, who sits on the bench in Ocean County in southern New Jersey.

Their recommendation comes just weeks after one of Russo's former law clerks accused him of sexual harassment.

The sexual assault victim appeared before Russo in May 2016 to seek a restraining order against her attacker.

When the woman described her encounter with the man, Russo asked her: 'Do you know how to stop somebody from having intercourse with you?'

'To run away or try to get away,' the woman responded, according to the transcript.

'Run away, get away. Anything else?' Russo asked.

'I - that's all I know,' the woman replied.

'Block your body parts? Close your legs? Call the police?' Russo pressed. 'Did you do any of those things?'

The ethics committee found that Russo's conduct toward the woman demonstrated 'an emotional immaturity wholly unbefitting the judicial office and incompatible with the decorum expected of every jurist'.

Russo's conduct 'was not only discourteous and inappropriate, but also egregious given the potential for those questions to re-victimize the plaintiff,' the panel wrote.

Five members of the nine-member review panel recommended a three-month suspension for Russo, while four recommended that he be suspended for six months due to the 'severity of this misconduct,' according to NJ.com.

In addition to the suspension, the panel recommended that Russo be required to attend training on 'appropriate courtroom demeanor.' The Supreme Court will make a final ruling on July 9.

The ethics review panel also concluded that Russo violated rules of conduct on other occasions, including when he ruled on an alimony case in which he acknowledged he knew both parties.

In that case, according to the complaint, Russo reversed an order by another judge who had issued a bench warrant for the man unless he paid $10,000 in back alimony. Russo ultimately reduced that to $300.

Continue at link

Suspension urged for judge who told woman: 'Close your legs'

The panel said Superior Court Judge John Russo showed 'emotional immaturity'. The woman had appeared before Russo to get restraining order against her attacker in May 2016.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Ripley]

Tch slap on the wrist. Stupid white guy keeps his job

 

[Satanica]

Yeah, that will teach him. That says a lot about how state's Supreme Court feels about victim's rights, especially female victims. Emotional immaturity, my ass.

 

[Eleven]

Tiny dick, low class guy in power. Hopefully, some big guy will bend him over a chair and let him try to stop being raped.

 

[Sugar Cookie]

@Satanica

Superior Court Judge John Russo got the ax Wednesday after asking a rape victim in 2016 whether she attempted to keep her legs closed during her alleged assault. The state Supreme Court recommended his removal and he will now have until Aug. 19 to offer evidence proving why he should keep his position.

“Sexual assault is an act of violence. It terrorizes, degrades, and induces fear in victims,” said Chief Justice Stuart Rabner in a statement. “Without question, it is a most serious matter in which fault lies solely with the perpetrator, not the victim. And our State has a strong interest in protecting victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.”

Russo — who is also reportedly facing a sexual harassment suit from his former law clerk — has been suspended without pay, pending the conclusion of his removal proceedings.

The state’s court system on Wednesday announced the launch of a sex crime training program for all judges.

Judge who said teen rape suspect was ‘from a good family’ steps down

The New Jersey judge who refused to try a 16-year-old boy who was accused of rape as an adult — because he comes from a “good family” — has decided to step down, according t…

nypost.com

 

[Keepalowprofile]

Russo — who is also reportedly facing a sexual harassment suit from his former law clerk —

It all makes sense now.

 

[Satanica]

(TRENTON, N.J.) — A judge who suggested that a woman seeking a restraining order could “close your legs” to prevent a sexual assault was removed from the bench Tuesday by the New Jersey Supreme Court and permanently barred from presiding over a courtroom.

The unanimous decision cited “repeated and serious acts of misconduct” by state Superior Court Judge John Russo Jr.

Chief Justice Stuart Rabner wrote that it would be “inconceivable” for Russo to preside over domestic violence or sexual assault matters after those comments.

The justices had recommended last summer that Russo be removed from the bench, and a three-judge advisory panel agreed in January.
[....]
In court filings and at a hearing in December, Russo expressed remorse for his comments to the woman and for joking about the exchange with court personnel afterward.

He also has argued that the Supreme Court’s penalty is excessive because an advisory panel on judicial conduct had last year recommended a three-month unpaid suspension.

The woman appeared before Russo in 2016 seeking a restraining order against a man she said sexually assaulted her. According to a transcript of the exchange, when the woman described her encounter with the man, Russo asked her, “Do you know how to stop somebody from having intercourse with you?”

When the woman answered yes and said one method would be to run away, Russo continued, “Close your legs? Call the police? Did you do any of those things?”

He also made joking comments to staffers about the exchange after the woman had left the courtroom, according to a report issued by the judicial conduct committee.

Russo has contended that he was trying only to elicit more information and that he chose his words poorly, and that he has acknowledged his mistake.

The report by the three-judge panel noted four instances of misconduct — including a matrimonial matter for which he did not recuse himself even though he knew someone involved.

The instances didn’t indicate dishonesty when taken separately, the panel found, but his testimony regarding two of the allegations “lacked candor, fabricated after-the-fact explanations for events, and displayed a lack of integrity that is unworthy of judicial office.”

Judge Who Advised Woman to 'Close Your Legs' to Avoid Sexual Assault Permanently Removed From the Bench

New Jersey Superior Court Judge John Russo has been on unpaid suspension since January

time.com