Overview

• In 2015, former Judge Robert J. Putorti brandished a loaded gun at a litigant who was a 6-feet-tall Black man, claiming he feared for his safety because the man approached the bench too quickly.
• Following the incident, Putorti was found to have consistently exaggerated the physical stature of the litigant by using racially biased terminology, describing him as a 'large Black man' built 'like a football player'.
• Putorti expressed no remorse following the incident and later bragged to colleagues and in a college news article about pulling out the gun in the court, referencing racial elements.
• The New York State Court of Appeals has affirmed the removal of Putorti from his judicial office due to his racist behaviour and his participation in illegal fundraising activities for the local Elks Lodge while under investigation.
• This case highlights the issue of racial bias within the justice system, with Putorti's actions and his subsequent boasting deemed 'indefensible and inimical to the role of a judge' by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.