A recently retired San Diego Superior Court judge was publicly admonished Thursday by the state’s agency that investigates judicial misconduct complaints for missing more than 150 days of work and making “undignified, discourteous and offensive comments” while on the bench.
Judge Howard Shore was previously censured by the state’s Commission on Judicial Performance for frequent absences, while Thursday’s decision also references comments he made that could be “reasonably perceived as bias, prejudice or harassment based on race.”
Those comments largely occurred during pre-trial motions hearings Shore presided over regarding California Racial Justice Act motions, in which defendants argue racial bias played a role in their prosecution.
Among the statements highlighted in the commission’s decision include Shore using the N-word in a hypothetical and his arguments against the existence of systemic racism in the judicial system or racial bias in various situations, such as when a police officer is a minority.
Last year, an Orange County Superior Court judge disqualified Shore from hearing several Racial Justice Act motions. Judge Cheri Pham ruled that comments Shore made could lead a person to “reasonably believe that Judge Shore believes certain racial or ethnic groups commit more crimes than others.”
Shore was also reassigned to preside only over civil cases. He announced his retirement earlier this year.
The commission wrote that Shore denied his comments reflected bias or that he was opposed to the Racial Justice Act. Shore said his comments were intended to “engage in a meaningful exchange with the attorneys to address the significant issues and important goals of the Racial Justice Act.”
Regarding his absences from the bench, Shore said his frequent Fridays away from the courthouse stemmed from a personal issue involving a family member living in Los Angeles. Shore stated that he needed to drive up to Los Angeles to assist his family members, but could not drive up on Saturdays because as an Orthodox Jew, he would not be able to drive a motor vehicle on those days, the commission wrote.
Shore missed at least 155 days in 2021 and 2022, including not being present in the courthouse on any Friday between May 28, 2021 and Nov. 18, 2022, according to the commission, which stated the absences also exceeded his available vacation time by 87 days.
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