[Editors note: Welcome to the amNew York Law Bench Report, where we will feature notable rulings from state and federal courts, brief news bulletins that impact the judiciary and announcements from judges’ chambers. Are we missing anything? Contact editor-in-chief Andrew Denney at adenney@schnepsmedia.com]
Upstate town justice out over misconduct
After being charged with misconduct by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct for “engaging in biased and discourteous behavior” and “demonstrating a significant misunderstanding of legal procedures,” Todd C. Whitford resigned effective Dec. 10 from the Jerusalem Town Court.
In one example detailed in his stipulation to the commission, Whitford at a March 2022 hearing insulted and demeaned a putative victim of domestic violence, including by saying she had the “brain of a small child,” and cross-examine the victim on materials that were not marked or admitted into evidence.
The judge also denigrated law enforcement, referring to documents officers prepared as “garbage” and “bullshit.” During a sentencing, the judge questioned whether a defendant was culpable and told the defendant, “I hope you’re not mad at me,” for imposing the sentence.
Whitford, who is not an attorney, had served on the bench since 2018. His current term would have expired on Dec. 31, 2026.
“A judge is required to maintain professional competence in the law, and to act in a fair, unbiased and respectful manner toward all who appear in court. Judge Whitford’s resignation, after being charged with misconduct for having failed in all of these areas, is an appropriate resolution to this case,” commission administrator Robert Tembeckjian said in a statement.
As part of his agreement Whitford affirmed that he would neither seek nor accept judicial office at any time in the future.
Watertown judge resigns as commission cites disability
Eric T. Swartz, a part-time Watertown City Court judge, will resign at the end of the year amid the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct’s probe into his ability to perform his duties, due to an undisclosed health condition.
“While the commission has authority to retire a judge for disability, Judge Swartz’s agreement to leave the bench, in the face of a condition that interfered with his judicial duties, is commendable. We wish him well,” commission administrator Robert Tembeckjian said in a statement.
The commission said it received a complaint that Swartz was suffering from a condition that interfered with his ability to do his job.
Swartz became a Watertown City Court judge in 2021. He previously served as a justice of the Watertown Town Court from 2020 to 2021. His current term would have expired on Dec. 31, 2026.
The state judicial conduct commission said it has accepted 159 permanent resignation stipulations since the procedure was instituted in 2003.
COVID-19 and consequential injuries can be eligible for workers compensation, appeals court rules
Contracting COVID-19 through close contact with the public in an environment where the virus has high “prevalence” can be considered a work-related accident eligible for workers’ compensation, the state’s highest court rules.
In an unanimous Nov. 24 decision, the Court of Appeals ruled that Family Dollar employee Frank Aungst was eligible for workers’ compensation after contracting COVID-19 and suffering a stroke one week later as a result of the virus, holding that if a person contracts COVID-19 through close contact with the public, that exposure can be found to be a work-related accident if the person can show COVID-19’s “prevalence” in the workplace.
Aungst tested positive for COVID-19 on April 23, 2020, following working 50 hours or more per week at a high-volume Family Dollar, which he testified was not enforcing social distancing or face masking policies and did not provide employees with sneeze guards or protective face masks until mid-April. Besides his Family Dollar job, Aungst was otherwise isolated from the public, besides twice weekly medical appointments in offices that followed COVID-19 safety protocols. On May 1, he suffered a stroke, which medical professionals attested was a result of his COVID-19 infection.
The ruling affirms the original decision of the Workers’ Compensation Board on the matter and rules against Family Dollar, which argued that “prevalence” of the virus was not a valid argument for workers’ compensation and denied Aungst’s claims that he contracted COVID-19 at his job and his stroke was a direct result of the disease.
“As applied to COVID-19, the ‘prevalence’ framework specifically requires a claimant to demonstrate an ‘extraordinary’ level of exposure through evidence of frequent contact with the public or co-workers ‘in an area where COVID-19 is prevalent,’ the court writes in its decision. “It thus recognizes, as have our prior cases, that persistent, high-risk exposure to a disease in the workplace culminating in infection can constitute a compensable accident.”
The ruling held that there does not need to be one specific instance of exposure or source of exposure to make a person eligible for workers’ compensation and that workplace conditions that significantly elevate a person’s risk exposure above the ordinary can constitute an eligible accidental injury.
The case is captioned Matter of Aungst v. Family Dollar
