David Andreatta

@david_andreatta

It was around midnight on a Saturday in November that Rochester City Court Judge Leticia Astacio allegedly found herself in an employees' bathroom at Papaya Asian Kitchen and Bar at Marketplace Mall facing a vial of pepper spray.

On the other end of the vial was security guard Alan Pimm, who would later tell police he checked on the bathroom at the request of a female server who complained a gaggle of women were inside and refused to leave.

"That's when one of the females stated, 'You can't spray me, I'm a judge,' " Pimm told police, according to his deposition. "At that point I could tell she was intoxicated, due to her slurred speech and lack of balance.

"I had previous knowledge of the female who identified herself as a judge," his deposition continued. "Her name is Judge Astacio."

Pimm's testimony, given to State Police on Nov. 29, is now part of a declaration of delinquency that was filed in court late last week accusing Astacio of violating the conditions of her drunken driving conviction sentence for a third time.

Astacio, who has been stripped of her judicial duties but not her title or her $173,000 judicial salary, was found guilty in August of driving while intoxicated and sentenced to a conditional discharge of a year. Among those conditions were abstaining from drinking alcohol and not violating any state law.

READ MORE:

► February 2016: City Court Judge charged with DWI

► March 2016: Judge allegedly told police: 'You're f------ ruining my life'

► August 2016: Leticia Astacio, City Court judge, guilty of DWI

► November 2016: Judge Astacio admits drunken driving violation

► November 2016: Judge Astacio stripped of all duties

Within in a month, a court-mandated alcohol sensor in her car, known as an interlock device, detected alcohol on her breath as she attempted to start the car. It happened again a month after that, and on Nov. 16 she pleaded guilty to a single violation that satisfied both instances for the prosecution. Her admission extended her use of the interlock device an additional six months, to February 2018.

Four days later, on Nov. 20, she was allegedly in the bathroom at Papaya Asian Kitchen and Bar fending off a security guard.

Pimm, the guard, told police he recognized Astacio from media reports and from the YMCA in Gates that they both apparently frequent. He recalled knocking on the bathroom door and it being answered by a woman.

"A female opened the door and I directed all females to exit," his deposition read. "The female then attempted to close the door on me.

"I made entry to the bathroom and again directed all to leave," his deposition went on. "No one complied, so I pulled out my pepper spray and again directed all to leave the bathroom."

Pimm told police that Astacio and "her friends" eventually exited without him deploying his pepper spray.

"After she exited the bathroom, I stood approximately 10 feet away from her and continued to pay close attention to Judge Astacio," his deposition read. "I observed Judge Astacio to sway side to side and use her friends around her to maintain balance."

Pimm testified that he never saw Astacio consume alcohol that night and that he was not close enough to her to detect alcohol on her breath. But he said he has worked security at bars for 20 years and has been trained to judge whether patrons are drunk.

Ontario County Assistant District Attorney Zach Maurer, who is handling Astacio's case, said his office drafted the declaration of delinquency and filed it Friday afternoon with Acting City Court Judge Stephen Aronson.

Aronson signed the declaration that day, ordering Astacio to appear in court at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 9.

Law and Disorder: What to do with Judge Astacio?

The declaration alleges Astacio violated her conditional discharge on three counts, two of which included drinking at Papaya Asian Kitchen and Bar and trespassing in the employees' bathroom.

The third count was linked to photographs of Astacio at what appeared to be a drinking party. Those photos surfaced on Facebook on Thanksgiving, a week after she admitted to her first violation and four days after her alleged confrontation in the Papaya Asian Kitchen and Bar bathroom.

The photos show Astacio standing with a group of women around a table containing plastic shot glasses and a bottle of tequila in what appears to be a warehouse or empty office space. While Astacio was pictured holding a cup, her lawyer, Ed Fiandach, told WHEC-TV (Channel 10) at the time that she was drinking water.

The declaration asserts that Astacio consumed alcohol that day and that the setting was 510 State St. in Rochester, a warehouse near Lyell Avenue.

"My client adamantly denies drinking," Fiandach said Monday.

He said Astacio claims to be attending a rehabilitation program that continuously tests her for alcohol consumption and that all tests were negative.

Fiandach said Astacio acknowledged being at Marketplace Mall, but that she did not approach the bar and did not recall having a confrontation with a security guard in the bathroom.

Astacio hasn't presided in court since her arrest last February, and was barred from non-public areas of the Monroe County's judicial buildings in November after admitting she violated her sentence.

Those restrictions were placed on her by her supervising judges. She remains a judge and entitled to her salary, however, because only the State Commission on Judicial Conduct can remove a judge.

The commission does not acknowledge open investigations, but a probe is thought to be under way given the extent of Astacio's criminal case and the media coverage surrounding it.

DANDREATTA@Gannett.com

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