By David Pitt
DNAinfo reporter/producer
MANHATTAN — A Manhattan Criminal court judge abruptly resigned after a massive amount of pornography was found on his work computer, the Daily News reported.
Judge James D. Gibbons, 47, was an Assistant District Attorney for 14 years before Mayor Rudolph Guiliani appointed him to the bench in December 2001. He was away on paternity leave with a newborn son when he tendered his resignation on Aug. 17.
"There was a lot of porn on his computer — all young women," an investigator told the News. "Lots of crotch and cleavage shots."
Gibbons was under investigation for an alleged relationship with Legal Aid lawyer Jeanne Emhoff, 31, who had recently given birth to his baby, the News reported.
The allegation raised serious questions of legal impropriety, especially if the Legal Aid lawyer had appeared before the judge.
Citing "multiple sources involved in the investigation," the New York Post reported the 47-year-old Gibbons had come under scrutiny after he was reported to be socializing in his off hours with a group of Legal Aid lawyers, including the woman who had borne his child in early August.
The Post said that investigators had seized his work computer when they found the pornography on it.
David Bookstaver, New York State Courts spokesperson, would not confirm that there were allegations of impropriety.
The Harvard-educated judge’s high profile defendants included Naomi Campbell, arrested after flinging a telephone at her maid, and David Karloff, charged in the knifing death of an Upper East Side psychiatrist.
"He was a very careful judge on the law," lawyer Adam Freedman told the News. "If he was using his state-issued computer for illegal activities, it would be uncharacteristic, considering how careful he is on the law."
