The lawyer for a Rochester City Court judge who received a two-month jail sentence on Thursday for driving while intoxicated has filed an appeal in Rochester City Court on behalf of her client.
Attorney Bridget Field of the Law Firm of Mark A. Young in Rochester planned to bring an appeal on the basis that Judge Leticia Astacio had no previous criminal record. It will be heard in Monroe County Court.
On Thursday, acting Rochester City Court Judge Stephen Aronson sentenced Astacio to 60 days in jail and an additional three years of probation after she was found guilty last month of violating the terms of her conditional discharge on a DWI conviction.
Astacio, who has been incarcerated since June 5, also must wear an ankle monitor for six months. She will receive credit for time already served and a reduction of time for good behavior and will likely be released in mid-July (NYLJ, July 6).
The Commission on Judicial Conduct has the authority to determine if any judge should be removed, said Robert Tembeckjian, its administrator and general counsel, but could not speak about Astacio's case. Judges who appear before the commission receive "full due process," which is confidential, he said.
"Only the Court of Appeals has the power to suspend a judge," Tembeckjian said, "And then only in one of three circumstances: if the judge is charged with a felony, or with any offense that involves 'moral turpitude,' or if the commission has recommended removal."
The commission is slated to meet next on August 3.
Astacio was arrested in February 2016 for driving while intoxicated on Interstate 490 in Rochester.