England: three judges removed from office after viewing pornography on court computers

A spokesperson for the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office said: “Three judges: district judge Timothy Bowles; immigration judge Warren Grant; and, deputy district judge and recorder Peter Bullock; have been removed from judicial office following an investigation into an allegation that they viewed pornographic material on judicial IT equipment in their offices.

“The lord chancellor and the lord chief justice were satisfied that the material did not include images of children or any other illegal content, but concluded that this was an inexcusable misuse of their judicial IT accounts and wholly unacceptable conduct for a judicial office holder.

“A fourth judge, recorder Andrew Maw, was also found to have viewed similar inappropriate material via his judicial IT account.

“The lord chancellor and the lord chief justice would likewise have removed Recorder Maw had he not resigned before the conclusion of the disciplinary process. The judges were not linked in any way.”