A minor fender bender that occurred in August of 2015 caused Judge Shari R. Michels to be placed on the admonishment list after a ruling by the Commission on Judicial Conduct.
Judge Michels was placed on the list because she ran into the back of a police van and urged the cop driving the vehicle to "let it slide."
The officer driving the van testified that Judge Michels repeatedly told him "she was a judge in an effort to avoid the consequences of a minor traffic accident in which her car struck a police vehicle."
The state's Judicial Conduct Commission ruled that the judge's action after the crash "created the appearance that (she) did not want to be treated like an ordinary motorist involved in an accident, but instead expected deference because of her judicial position."
A spokesperson from the Office of Court Administration told the New York Post that the judge will be demoted for two years and her salary will be reduced from $208,000 to $193,500 per year.
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