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Nude photos of defendants at judge's home a 'turning point' in resignation decision, official says

A part-time Arkansas judge facing a legal ethics case over accusations that he offered to reduce sentences in exchange for sexual favors has decided to resign, at the suggestion of a state disciplinary commission, after new evidence emerged.

In a Friday letter to the attorney representing Cross County District Judge Joseph Boeckmann Jr., the state Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission said it had obtained from the respondent’s computer over 1,000 photos and soon expected to have another 3,400, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

The letter by executive director David Sachar said the photos included an unstated number of pictures of young men, some nude, “in various poses inside the judge’s home and outside in his yard.” (Boeckmann was previously accused in an ethics complaint of offering to pay $300 to one defendant for a nude pose in the position of Michelangelo’s statue of David.)

“We identified many of the young men as those that your client had in front of him as defendants in Cross County District Court,” Sachar wrote.

The letter offered Boeckmann an opportunity to resign from his job as a judge, setting a Monday deadline.

In a Monday responding letter, Boeckmann resigned effective immediately and promised “to never seek employment as a local, county or state employee or public servant in the State of Arkansas,” the Democrat-Gazette reports.

Sachar called the discovery of the photos “a turning point” in the legal ethics case.

Attorney Jeff Rosenzweig represents Boeckmann. He could not be reached on Monday afternoon for comment, the newspaper says.