Judges Sacked For Watching Porn

By Philip Otuo,

Three judges have been sacked for viewing pornographic material via their official IT accounts, the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office has said. The pornography was not illegal in content, a spokesman added. However the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice concluded it was an "inexcusable misuse" of their official accounts and "wholly unacceptable conduct for a judicial office holder". A fourth judge resigned before the official inquiry had concluded. District Judge Timothy Bowles, Immigration Judge Warren Grant and Deputy District Judge and Recorder Peter Bullock have been removed from office. The three judges were not linked in any way. A fourth judge, Recorder Andrew Maw, was also found to have viewed similar inappropriate material via his judicial IT account. Judge Maw worked at Lincoln County Court, District Judge Bowles at Romford County Court, Judge Bullock on the North Eastern Circuit, and Judge Grant at the Immigration and Asylum Chamber, based at Taylor House in London. 'Question of conduct' The Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice would likewise have removed Recorder Maw had he not resigned before the conclusion of the disciplinary process. The BBC's legal correspondent Clive Coleman said: "These are junior judges, not senior ones, but nonetheless it is a very, very serious matter." It is a question of whether rf not the judiciary system is being drawn into disrepute, he said. He added: "There's no suggestion at all that the judges have done anything illegal, it is a question of conduct. "It is critical that the public have confidence in our judiciary system." As such, the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO) "carefully monitors" judicial conduct. A spokesman for the JCIO told the BBC that the judges would no longer be allowed to work in a judicial role. He said: "As far as I'm aware the judges are not appealing the decision."

Source: BBC