New Hartford, New York. After making racially offensive remarks at a private party, a state panel has called for the removal of a justice from the state Supreme Court who was chosen by people throughout Central New York.
According to court documents submitted to the state Court of Appeals, Erin Galla, a judge for the Fifth Judicial District, which is located in Oneida County, has submitted her letter of resignation. The date of the letter was December 15.
Since the state Commission on Judicial Conduct decided on July 17 that Gall should be removed from office due to an inappropriate encounter she had with police and citizens at a graduation party in 2022, she has been placed on pay suspension.
According to the commission, Gall engaged in a lengthy, racially inflammatory, and profane public tirade outside a high school graduation celebration in New Hartford on July 2, 2022, during which she repeatedly cited her office, threatened to shoot a group of Black youths, and disparaged their intelligence.
She made more than a dozen references to her role as a judge during an 80-minute encounter with police. She made racially offensive remarks as well as others that showed a prejudice against civil liberties in favor of law enforcement.
The incident started when groups of teenagers who hadn’t been invited started showing up at a party where Gall was a guest. Police were called as fights started. Gall told the commission that her remarks at the party were prompted by the fact that her husband and son were participating in the conflicts.
Related Article: Watch videos that expose racist tirades by a Central New York judge: I’ll shoot them
Gall asked the Court of Appeals to examine the commission’s judgment on August 16 in the hopes that they would suggest a less severe punishment than her dismissal.
Her lawyer informed the court of her resignation and filed a move to withdraw her appeal on December 17.
Gall stated in an affidavit that was attached to the motion that giving up on the idea of staying on the bench was one of the most difficult choices she has ever had to make.
She said that the decision was driven by a wish to shield her family from death threats and unfavorable publicity that resulted from the incident.
For fear of putting my family in risk once more, I don’t think I can proceed with arguing this appeal, Gall wrote.
She also pledged never to run for another judicial position by agreeing to the commission’s recommendation for removal.
Gall continues to challenge the commission’s conclusion that her acts were racially objectionable, even though she has acknowledged that she shouldn’t serve as a judge.
In the affidavit, she stated, “I definitely do not believe it is fair to characterize my reactions as racially motivated and to stigmatize me with that finding based on the facts of the case.”
When Gall testified before the commission on November 15, 2022, she also downplayed her behavior. Gall attempted to deny that she had made derogatory remarks regarding the Black youngsters’ IQ.
Gall is shown on body camera insulting a group of four Black teenagers who were not invited and who were left stranded at the party after misplacing their car keys on the grounds.
On police body cams, Gall can be heard remarking, “They don’t look like they’re that smart.” They definitely won’t be attending business school.
She was referring to her own son’s upcoming fall enrollment in business school when she made the remark.
Gall could have been referring to a police officer she felt was being patronizing to her, she told the commission during her testimony.
Gall was requested to watch the body camera film again, and the testimony was stopped. Gall said she was referring to the group of Black teenagers when the inquiry resumed.
Gall denied that those remarks qualified as racist when asked. She continued by defending her stance.
According to Gall’s testimony, I never identified them as Black men. Color is invisible to me. I’m not racist. Many of my family acquaintances are people of color, whom we call aunts and uncles.
Gall added that there was no racist motivation behind her threat to shoot the group of Black teenagers if they went back to her friend’s farm. She reaffirmed that she did not notice color and claimed that it was not a racial issue when asked about the appearance of a white judge threatening the group with violence.
Commission member Nina M. Moore of Syracuse expressed her worries about the racially inappropriate remarks in a concurring opinion after the commission’s final decision to recommend Gall’s removal.
According to Moore, Gall’s credibility as a judge is equally harmed by the impression of racial bias.
Moore resisted Gall’s defense. Moore is a professor at Colgate University and the author of a book about institutional racism in the criminal justice system.
Moore said that the world would probably be a better place if there was a therapeutic remedy for race conduct. Judge Erin Gall should not, however, remain on the bench while Black litigants are compelled to wait for a remedy until one is available.
Gall’s application will be examined by the panel, according to commission administrator Robert Tembeckjian.
Tembeckjian said in a statement that despite her self-serving and unconvincing justifications, it seems she has now accepted that her despicable behavior will lead to her official dismissal from office.
The panel has issued 184 removal determinations in 46 years. The state Court of Appeals has never rejected a sanction that started as a removal request, but it has reduced ten removal decisions to either a censure or an admonition.
In 2011, Gall, who is Republican, was elected to the bench. December 2025 was the expiration date of her present 14-year tenure. She was paid $232,600.
In 2011, while seeking for a position on the California Supreme Court, Erin Gall campaigned at an annual Pompey spaghetti supper. She won a 14-year tenure in office.File photo from Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard
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