Tag: sexual isconduct
Federal appeals judge announces immediate retirement amid probe of sexual misconduct allegations
Alex Kozinski, the powerful judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit who was facing a judicial investigation over allegations that he subjected 15 women to inappropriate sexual behavior, announced Monday that he would retire effective immediately.
In a statement provided by his lawyer, Kozinski apologized, saying that he “had a broad sense of humor and a candid way of speaking to both male and female law clerks alike” and that, “in doing so, I may not have been mindful enough of the special challenges and pressures that women face in the workplace.”
“It grieves me to learn that I caused any of my clerks to feel uncomfortable; this was never my intent,” he said. “For this I sincerely apologize.”
[Alex Kozinski’s full statement announcing his immediate retirement]
Kozinski, 67, said that although family and friends had urged him to stay on, “at least long enough to defend myself,” he “cannot be an effective judge and simultaneously fight this battle. Nor would such a battle be good for my beloved federal judiciary. And so I am making the decision to retire, effective immediately.”
The announcement comes just days after The Washington Post reported that nine more women had accused Kozinski of making sexual comments to them or of other conduct, including four who said he touched them inappropriately. That story followed an earlier report in The Post, which detailed the allegations of six women, including former clerks who said Kozinski showed them porn in his chambers.
After the first report, the chief judge of the 9th Circuit initiated a review of Kozinski’s conduct, and the case was assigned Friday to the 2nd Circuit Judicial Council. It was not immediately clear what would happen to that inquiry or what would happen to the legal matters to which Kozinski is assigned.
“One or more” of Kozinski’s clerks had resigned after the allegations against Kozinski became public, a court official has said.
Kozinski was appointed to the 9th Circuit by President Ronald Reagan in 1985 and over time became one of the most well-known federal appeals court judges in the country. He served as chief of the 9th Circuit from 2007 to 2014. He often wrote colorful opinions and, unlike many of his colleagues on the bench, did not shy from media appearances.
During a trademark dispute between the toy company Mattel and the record company that produced the 1997 song “Barbie Girl,” Kozinski famously quipped in a written opinion: “The parties are advised to chill.”
Many of Kozinski’s clerks went on to prestigious clerkships with the Supreme Court, and they are now scattered at premier posts in the legal industry. But some said there was a darker side to working for the judge. He demanded his clerks work into the wee hours of the morning, and three former clerks who talked to The Post said he showed them explicit images, not in the context of any legal case, in his chambers.
Just 10 days ago, The Post reported that six women — all former clerks or more junior staffers known as externs in the 9th Circuit — alleged that Kozinski had subjected them to a range of inappropriate sexual conduct or comments.