Judge Alex Kosinki Resigns Amid Porn Sex Harassment Investigation

SAN FRANCISCO—Just days after it was announced he would be the subject of an official court investigation of accusations of sexual misconduct, Federal Appeals Court Judge Alex Kozinski has resigned. Kosinski, of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, issued a statement saying a battle over the accusations would not be good for the judiciary. The resignation is effective immediately.  "I may not have been mindful enough of the special challenges and pressures that women face in the workplace," his statement said. "It grieves me to learn that I caused any of my clerks to feel uncomfortable; this was never my intent. For this I sincerely apologize." At least 15 women from the legal profession who worked with or for the 67-year-old judge had accused Kosinksi of various forms of sexual misconduct, including inappropriate touching and lewd comments. A former law clerk alleged Kosinski forced her to view porn on his office computer and tell him whether the images aroused her. The allegations go back for decades. Kozinski was the subject of a Washington Post exposé earlier this month in which six women charged the judge, who was appointed to the Ninth Circuit bench by President Ronald Reagan in 1985, with inappropriate sexual conduct. The Ninth Circuit is based in San Francisco. The Second Circuit’s courthouse is in lower Manhattan, New York City. See the AVN.com article about the allegations against Kosinski at this link. Kozinski, 67, was chief judge of the 9th Circuit, the largest federal appeals court circuit in the country, from 2007 to 2014.