2 Judges Suspended Amid Allegations Of Improper Conduct

 

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Two Louisiana judges have been placed on suspension by the state Supreme Court amid allegations of improper conduct.

The New Orleans Advocate reports state District Judge Jeff Perilloux of St. John the Baptist Parish was suspended Friday. In a separate case, Judge Byron Williams of the criminal district court in New Orleans sought and was granted a suspension, which began Monday.

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Williams' attorney, Ernest Jones, said Williams stepped aside due to "highly publicized" allegations that Williams denies.

The New Orleans Advocate and Nola.com|The Times-Picayune , both citing anonymous sources, had earlier reported allegations of Williams improperly touching women and making inappropriate comments from the bench.

Perilloux, meanwhile, has been indicted on charges of indecent behavior with a juvenile and sexual battery.

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The indictment accuses Perilloux of committing "lewd or lascivious" acts on two girls in May and June 2017 and "intentionally" touching the breasts of another girl in December 2017.

Perilloux, 50, took a leave of absence after the allegations were made public. He has denied the allegations "unequivocally and emphatically," according to a recent statement. He served for 12 years as an assistant district attorney in St. John Parish and was also the legal counsel for the parish government before being elected in December 2016 to a seat on the bench.

Williams, 63, is a former federal prosecutor who worked under ex-U.S. Attorney Eddie Jordan. When Jordan became Orleans Parish district attorney in 2003, Williams followed him and served as a state prosecutor for five years.

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