For years, Judge Eleanor Ross\u2019s secret was passed down from law clerk to law clerk.<\/p>\n
They whispered about the sultry jazz music that emanated from her chambers when a uniformed police commander, a man they called her \u201cvisitor,\u201d disappeared into her private office. The clerks could sometimes hear the unmistakable sounds of sex from behind the door.<\/p>\n
They chalked it up as one of the burdens of working for Judge Ross, who routinely rubber stamped their draft orders and added little else before issuing them as rulings. But the clerks in the Atlanta courthouse felt helpless: Do you report your married boss, a federal judge no less, for having a clandestine in-office affair with a law enforcement officer?<\/p>\n
One day last year, a clerk did exactly that.<\/p>\n
The complaint led to a monthslong judicial investigation that involved courthouse interviews and the seizure of a beige office couch cushion that was tested in a lab for bodily fluid.<\/p>\n
The ensuing investigative report is a chronicle of sex, lies and ethical breaches, much of which is cloaked in secrecy because America\u2019s federal court system affords judges broad deference. The report, which became public last month, did not include Judge Ross\u2019s name, gender or location. Details of the anonymous judge\u2019s case soon rocketed through the clubby, decorous world of the judiciary.<\/p>\n
The New York Times confirmed it was Judge Ross through interviews with three of her former clerks and two people familiar with the matter, and obtained a signed apology letter that she wrote as part of a judicial reprimand.<\/p>\n
Now, Judge Ross is under fire from all three branches of the federal government. Some Republican members of Congress are calling for<\/a> her impeachment<\/a>. The Justice Department is urging her to recuse herself from a high-profile election integrity case<\/a>. Some of her fellow judges say the punishment she received has been too lenient. And the Atlanta Police Department says it is investigating the accusations involving one of its top-ranking officers.<\/p>\n Judge Ross\u2019s conduct \u201cstrikes at the heart of judicial integrity,\u201d said Aliza Shatzman, an attorney who runs the Legal Accountability Project, a nonprofit group that advocates for court clerks. \u201cIt harms public trust in the federal courts to see this type of misconduct not taken seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n Judge Ross, who was nominated to the bench in 2014 by President Barack Obama, did not respond to requests for comment. Chief Judge William H. Pryor Jr., of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, which handed down her punishment, declined to comment.<\/p>\n The 20-page report<\/a> from a judicial committee documented Judge Ross\u2019s yearslong affair with a high-ranking police officer. It also concluded that she had improperly attended a campaign event for an unnamed district attorney. Details outlined in the investigation, as well as two people familiar with the matter, identified her as Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney. <\/p>\n The committee also found that Judge Ross had initially lied to her fellow judges by blaming the clerk who reported her misconduct, suggesting that he was retaliating against her by making \u201coutrageous\u201d and \u201cbaseless\u201d claims.<\/p>\n The findings drew scorn in the legal world, but it was, perhaps, the punishment she received \u2014 a private reprimand and an agreement to not be promoted to chief judge of her district court \u2014 that drew even more ire. It sparked questions of accountability in the justice system and concerns that federal judges with lifetime appointments can misbehave with little consequence, all while doling out serious sanctions to those who appear before them.<\/p>\n Jeremy Fogel, a retired federal judge who consults with judges on ethics questions, said some in the judiciary disagreed with how Judge Ross\u2019s case had been resolved. \u201cMany of the sitting judges with whom I\u2019ve spoken believe the findings as a whole warranted a more significant sanction,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The judicial committee cited Judge Ross\u2019s \u201cotherwise exemplary service\u201d in issuing her a private reprimand, which meant that her identity was supposed to remain a secret. In general, judges rarely face serious punishment.<\/p>\n Other federal judges have committed serious offenses and received private reprimands. They include one who pursued a relationship with an assistant who then accused him of sexual harassment<\/a>, one who made an antisemitic remark<\/a> during a trial, and another who harassed a Black salesman<\/a> passing through her neighborhood. All of those offending judges remained on the bench and their identities were never disclosed.<\/p>\n