"Finding Bail 'Shockingly High,' Court Tosses Out Judge" was the headline to a story earlier this week in the NY Times. Some quotes:
In most courtrooms, even the most notorious defendant can count on a few basic rights. In Judge Henry R. Bauer's courtroom in Troy, N.Y., however, that was not always possible, the state's highest court found yesterday.[Update 10/18/04] For another take, see this story from the New York Law Journal. Posted by Marcia Oddi at October 16, 2004 11:55 AMTime and again, Judge Bauer, of Troy City Court, set bail for minor offenses that the State Court of Appeals found "shockingly high," jailing those who could not make bail even when the underlying offense would not draw jail time. He neglected to tell defendants that they had the right to a lawyer, the court said, and he twice convicted people without a trial or a guilty plea. * * *
In one case of compounded judicial misconduct, the Court of Appeals found, Judge Bauer set $25,000 bail for a man charged with bicycling on the sidewalk at night without lights, an offense that calls for a maximum penalty of a $100 fine. When the defendant could not make bail, the judge jailed him for seven days until he finally pleaded guilty. At no time did Judge Bauer tell the man that he had the right to a lawyer.
The court's ruling yesterday completed a four-year process begun after a man charged with disorderly conduct complained to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct about the $50,000 bail that Judge Bauer had set. The commission eventually charged the judge with 51 counts of wrongdoing. In an unusual move, the judge asked that his hearing before the commission in January be opened to the public. After the hearing, the commission recommended his removal, and Judge Bauer appealed to the Court of Appeals.
While Judge Bauer has been suspended since May pending the outcome of his case, his standing in Troy, a city of 50,000 just north of Albany where he served since 1994, did not seem to suffer. In June the city's police union awarded him the Golden Shield, its highest honor for nonofficers. And last month Judge Bauer, a Republican, won a hotly contested primary for three other lines on the ballot against his Democratic opponent. He is now ineligible to run for re-election in November.