NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY GENERAL INVESTIGATING RETALIATION AGAINST JUDGE WITCHER

Judge Witcher’s retirement announcement culminates months of allegations of retaliationory conduct. The sudden retirement of the popular Judge sent shockwave throughout the region.

Judge Witcher alleged his assignment judge,, Judge Benjamin C. Telsey, who oversees all courts in Cumberland, Salem and Gloucester counties, questioned his fitness and threatened to exercise his authority and assume control of his courts him. The email was sent the day immediately after Judge Witcher’s on record statements.

The threat was sent via Telsey's official judiciary email .The email has been submitted to the Attorney General as a part of their incvestigation.

The email threatens Judge Witcher with removal from the bench on an unrelated 2021 Americans With Disabilities Act accommodation document combined with a November 2022 hospital stay for a Chrons disease as grounds to question Witcher's fitness to preside finally accusing Judge Witcher of personally scheduling the cases.

Last month, without explanation, Witcher was removed from the bench after local officials said they were told he needed a fitness evaluation by the Administrative Office of the Courts. Witcher said he was notified the state Judiciary and the Administrative Office of the Courts would not permit him to preside over court proceedings until it could be demonstrated that he was able to perform the full functions of his position,l.

The judiciary announced last week Witcher would be returning to judicial duties after he said he was briefly removed from the bench after officials told him he needed a fitness-for-duty evaluation

State officials denied Witcher was suspended or removed from the bench at the time and did not provide any additional information. However, last week a spokesman for the state Judiciary said Witcher would be returning to active duty in South Jersey shortly.

The New Jersey Attorney General state Division on Civil Rights is conducting its own independent investigation into whether any person or entity has engaged in unlawful retaliation in response to these allegations of discrimination, remains pending,” a spokeswoman said last week.

Judge Witcher — whose concerns about alleged discrimination against Latino defendants in his courtroom last year led to statewide reforms — announced this week he will retire from the bench this summer.