Former presiding judge at Mercer County Superior Court was given a one month, unpaid suspension following an investigation into his actions.
TRENTON - Former Mercer County Presiding Judge Gerald Council was suspended for a month without pay Thursday, following accusations that he inappropriately touched and demeaned a subordinate, according to a decision from the New Jersey Supreme Court.
The decision, which was handed down by the court Thursday, will go into effect on Dec. 7 and end on Jan. 7, a statement summarizing the decision read.
The announcement comes the day after a disciplinary hearing Wednesday in the state Supreme Court to review claims that Council acted inappropriately toward a
Judge Gerald Council speaks at the Mercer County drug court annual graduation at the Mercer County Criminal Courthouse in Trenton on Friday, June 28, 2013. court employee in 2012. At the hearing, the state's Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct (ACJC) Counsel Tracie Gelbstein recommended that Council be suspended for a month without pay, the New Jersey Law Journal reported.
Council was given a chance to respond to the claims against him Wednesday and told the court that he was "embarrassed" and that he, "failed the judiciary."
The accusations against Council were compiled in a 56-page presentment from the ACJC to the state Supreme Court in September. In the presentment, the ACJC detailed the claims, including that Council grabbed an employee by her ear to pull her out of a room, called her, "my troubled child" and gave defendants inappropriate nicknames in court.
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Council requested a transfer from his former position as presiding judge in the Mercer County Superior Court shortly after the presentment. He was granted that transfer last month to the family division of Middlesex County Superior Court.
In the statement Thursday, the Supreme Court said Council was in violation of three codes of conduct; he had not maintained a high standard of conduct; he did not "promote public confidence" in the judicial system; and he was not, "patient, dignified and courteous."
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.
