N.J. judiciary receives failing grade in financial disclosure, report says
Only twice has the state Supreme Court ever punished its own — a 2007 censure of an associate justice for improperly using his title to influence a lower-court case involving his son, and a 1990 reprimand for a justice who drove while intoxicated.
New Jersey, along with dozens of other states, is ripe for more trouble ahead because of lax financial disclosure rules for their high court justices, a watchdog group predicted Wednesday.
The Center for Public Integrity said New Jersey’s “self-policing form of oversight” and its high threshold for disclosure of gifts are among the reasons why the state gets an “F” in its report — the same grade received by 42 other states. The Garden State’s score was the 39th worse.
Winnie Comfort, spokeswoman for the state judiciary, said the ratings are flawed because they compare states such as New Jersey, where judges are appointed, to states where judges are elected. (Jordan/Asbury Park Press)
