When asked if Tuesday marked Beasley’s permanent return to the bench after a two-month absence, Gravatt said, “My only comment is that he is sitting in Dinwiddie today.”

“You probably know already that judges do not talk to reporters alone in their chambers about anything pending before the court,” the judge added. “Nor can they make comments about all sorts of things. What I’m telling you is exactly what I can tell you.”

Asked if Beasley will continue sitting in the various courts in the 11th District, or whether that will be decided on a day-to-day basis, the judge said:

“At a minimum, the answer is he will continue sitting,” Gravatt said. “Where he will be on any given day as a general rule, neither I nor any of the clerks will give out that information for obvious reasons. This is a line of work were people grow angry, so you generally do not give out an itinerary for people who” serve in the judiciary.

Beasley had served as Powhatan’s elected commonwealth’s attorney since 2000, and was elected by the General Assembly in September 2014 to fill the 11th District’s third general district judge position, which the legislature created in early 2014. His six-year term began Dec. 1, 2014.

Del. R. Lee Ware Jr., R-Powhatan, and former Sen. John Watkins, R-Powhatan, nominated Beasley for the judgeship. When contacted in December, neither legislator said they were aware of any allegations or the judge’s suspension. A Ware spokesman on Wednesday said the delegate had not learned any further information about the allegations and was unaware that Beasley had returned.