Investigate Je, judge In Smut Trial Flap Says.

[Teacher Mark 53]

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- The criminal prosecution of a hard-core pornographer has turned into a personal trial for the presiding judge.

Federal appeal court judge Alex Kozinski called Thursday for an ethics panel to investigate his own conduct after it was disclosed he had stored a treasure trove of lewd photos and videos on a publicly accessible Web site.

"I will cooperate fully in any investigation," Kozinski, chief judge of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, said in a statement.

Kozinski called on Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to assign the inquiry to a panel of judges outside the 9th Circuit's jurisdiction of nine western states.

Court rules permit such investigations to be transferred in high-profile cases, or when a decision within a district might weaken public confidence in the outcome.

Kozinski, 57, is known for his intellectual rigor, writing flourishes and outlandish personality.

But the graphic material has opened questions about his fitness to serve on the high-profile obscenity case as well as the standard for what types of images are taboo, particularly on a judge's personal Web site.

"If you found this kind of thing in your kid's bedroom you would wash your kid's mouth out with soap," said Laurie Levenson, a former federal prosecutor and law professor at Loyola University Law School. "Character counts for judges because they have so much power and affect so many people's lives."

The computerized cache included a picture of two nude women on all fours painted to look like cows, images of masturbation, a video of a bare-bottomed man being pursued by a sexually aroused donkey and a slide show featuring a striptease with a transsexual.

It's unclear what, if any, discipline Kozinski could face. Circuit judges are appointed for life and can only be fired by Congress, though they can be censured by fellow jurists.

Kozinski did not immediately respond to a request for an interview Thursday.

He left court Wednesday without comment after suspending the trial of Ira Isaacs, who is charged with obscenity for selling movies depicting bestiality and fetishes involving feces and urination. The delay until Monday will give lawyers time to consider whether to ask for Kozinski to step down from the case.

The existence of the videos and pictures was first revealed by the Los Angeles Times, which reported that Kozinski had acknowledged the material on his personal Web site, but blocked access to it after being interviewed. He claimed the images were not obscene.

The judge, a married father of three sons, told the newspaper he didn't know the Web site was accessible to Internet surfers. Kozinski told the Times he had posted sexual content on the site, but later said in an email to the legal Web site http://abovethelaw.com that his son, Yale, may have been responsible.

"I sure don't remember putting some of that stuff there," he wrote.

Yale Kozinski told The New York Times that the site is registered to him and he maintains it, but he never made clear who posted the images in question. He said it's possible for family or friends to post to the site, http://alex.kozinski.com.

Federal rules say judges should "act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary."

Cyrus Sanai, a Beverly Hills lawyer who has had a long-running dispute with the 9th Circuit, took credit for bringing the graphic material to light.

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Sanai said he discovered the sexual content in December while monitoring the judge's Web site as part of his legal rift with the court. After downloading the files, Sanai said he began contacting reporters at various publications in January to bring attention to what he called widespread ethical problems on the 9th Circuit.

He provided a copy of the files to The Associated Press on Wednesday, which appeared to mirror the Times' descriptions of videos and pictures on the Web site.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/13/obscen...eref=rss_latest

" I was researching the case dammit"!

Edited June 13, 2008 by WideAwakeInTheUSA

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

[Nagishkaw 510]

And he looks like a cross between Jerry Springer and Benny Hinn.

[Teacher Mark 53]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

[Teacher Mark 53]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption (and a typo in the subject line dammit).

Edited June 13, 2008 by WideAwakeInTheUSA

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption.

oh he was really a judge.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=66717

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74938

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=94123

[Peikko 1,575]

A very intelligent man by all accounts, the US is obsessed by puritanical morality. Happy days.

[Teacher Mark 53]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption.

oh he was really a judge.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=66717

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74938

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=94123

Well good for him:

The $67 Million Pants

Washington, D.C., Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers

A case, or cases, of bad reporting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=lawyer+sues...lient=firefox-a

Edited June 13, 2008 by WideAwakeInTheUSA

[SteveLaura 0]

The computerized cache included... a video of a bare-bottomed man being pursued by a sexually aroused donkey...

Dean, you really should lay off the drink, brother...

[Teacher Mark 53]

The computerized cache included... a video of a bare-bottomed man being pursued by a sexually aroused donkey...

Dean, you really should lay off the drink, brother...

I thought about Dean when I read that.

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption.

oh he was really a judge.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=66717

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74938

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=94123

Well good for him:

The $67 Million Pants

Washington, D.C., Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers

A case, or cases, of bad reporting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=lawyer+sues...lient=firefox-a

you're still right, most judges are lawyers

[Teacher Mark 53]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption.

oh he was really a judge.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=66717

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74938

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=94123

Well good for him:

The $67 Million Pants

Washington, D.C., Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers

A case, or cases, of bad reporting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=lawyer+sues...lient=firefox-a

you're still right, most judges are lawyers

I freakin' knew you were going to say that!

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

isn't this like the 3rd thread about this guy?

He's threadworthy.

kinda like that judge that sued the cleaners over his pants

I think that was actually a Lawyer. I didn't see any other posts about the Judge. Oh well. Mine has a picture and a witty caption.

oh he was really a judge.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=66717

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74938

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=94123

Well good for him:

The $67 Million Pants

Washington, D.C., Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers

A case, or cases, of bad reporting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=lawyer+sues...lient=firefox-a

you're still right, most judges are lawyers

I freakin' knew you were going to say that!

i've become predictable