Opinion
No. 11 JD 15
05-06-2020
IN RE: Robert Mulgrew Traffic Court Judge Philadelphia County
BEFORE: Honorable Doris Carson Williams, P.J., Honorable Jeffrey P. Minehart, J., Honorable Michael J. Barrasse, J., Honorable Jazelle M. Jones, J., Honorable John H. Foradora, J., Honorable James C. Schwartzman, J., Honorable James J. Eisenhower, J., Honorable Andrea E. Puppio, J. OPINION AND ORDER
The Honorable James C. Schwartzman did not participate in this Decision. --------
Former Traffic Court Judge Robert Mulgrew is before this Court for the determination of the appropriate sanction for the violations found in our Opinion dated October 4, 2019. Judge Mulgrew did not contest the Complaint against him or put forth any defense at any point in this proceeding.
In that Opinion we noted that Mulgrew had been convicted and sentenced on felonies in two multiple criminal episodes. Mulgrew took part in a scheme to steal state grant money and then, in a separate matter, committed perjury before a federal grand jury investigating the Philadelphia Traffic Court.
Mulgrew was sentenced to serve thirty months in federal prison for fraud and an additional eighteen months for the perjury offence.
In other cases involving a judge committing perjury we ordered that the offending judge be removed and barred from further judicial service.
See, e.g., In re Tynes , 149 A.3d 452 (Pa.Ct.Jud.Disc. 2017). Also we note other cases in which a judge was convicted of a felony, see, e.g., In re Conahan , 51 A.2d 922 (Pa.Ct.Jud.Disc. 2017); In re Ciavarella , 168 A.2d 983 (Pa.Ct.Jud.Disc. 2014) or even a serious misdemeanor, related to the job, In re Joy , 148 A.3d 162 (Pa.Ct.Jud.Disc. 2016) and removed.
Here, as a consequence of the multiple felonies he committed which brought the judicial office into disrepute Mulgrew is ORDERED removed from office and barred from judicial office in the future.