The private reprimand of a U.S. federal judge accused of having an affair with a high-ranking police officer has been upheld by a national judicial panel.
The judge, who was not publicly identified, was accused of having sex with the officer in chambers during business hours within earshot of courthouse staff and then making false statements about it.
The Judicial Conference of the U.S.’s Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability upheld the Atlanta-based 11th Circuit Judicial Council’s February decision on Friday, which detailed how to discipline the judge. Aside from the private reprimand, the judge agreed to forgo any opportunity to serve as chief judge in the court, the location of which was also not publicly disclosed.
The disciplined judge further agreed to apologize to any court staff who was interviewed as part of the probe and “indefinitely refrain from serving on any Judicial Conference committee,” according to the national judicial panel’s decision.
The allegations first surfaced last year after a law clerk reported multiple instances of the judge engaging in sexual activity with a police officer during business hours. The clerk also alleged that the judge had told staff members about having “had too many martinis the night before” at an event for a district attorney.
In its February ruling, the 11th Circuit said that it declined to impose a harsher sanction because the judge showed “a strong propensity for rehabilitation and continued diligent service to the judiciary.”
In October 2025, the judge initially denied the claims, but later walked back those statements and admitted to the affair, which had been going on for two years, per the 11th Circuit’s decision.
The investigation also found that the judge violated the Judicial Code of Conduct by attending a partisan event hosted by a district attorney’s campaign.