PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A disciplinary panel is recommending that the state Supreme Court dismiss Rafael A. Ovalles, Rhode Island’s first Hispanic judge, from the state District Court bench, finding that he had brought his judicial office into serious disrepute.

The state Commission on Judicial Tenure and Discipline released its 240-page report Wednesday, finding that Ovalles had committed 41 violations of the Rhode Island Code of Judicial Conduct. Its recommendation came after a weeks-long hearing in which the 14-member panel — composed of lawyers and judges — heard from some 60-plus witnesses about Ovalles’ persistent mistreatment of those who appeared before him, sexual degradation of female staff members and lawyers, napping on the job and widespread abusive conduct.

“Judges should aim to fairly administer justice in their everyday practices; however, Judge Ovalles actually inhibited the fair administration of justice through his lack of competence and behavioral misconduct,” the commission wrote in recommending the most severe sanction. “Judge Ovalles allowed his personal animus toward some attorneys to affect the way he ran his courtroom, resulting in courtroom delay and backlog of his calendars.

“The integrity of the Rhode Island judicial system is paramount. Criminal defendants, victims, witnesses, civil litigants, the state, and attorneys should not be left to question whether they receive fair treatment at the hands of a judicial officer. The public has been witness to Judge Ovalles’s uneven temperament, his lack of competence, and his vindictiveness. His conduct thus far has undermined public confidence in and perception of the judiciary.”

Ovalles' camp stridently objected to the commission's findings.

“We strongly disagree with the Commission's process and recommendation in this matter and will pursue all legal remedies available to Judge Ovalles," said former Providence Mayor Angel Taveras, Ovalles' nephew and part of his legal team.

Taveras noted that Ovalles was vindicated on the most salacious allegation: that he had removed his pants in chambers. The commission concluded that Ovalles "was not seen by staff with his pants removed."

The allegation regarding Ovalles' "propensity to remove his pants" in chambers was shown to be patently false, Taveras said.

The commission launched an investigation in 2014 after receiving complaints from deputy court clerk Karen Kanelos that she had seen Ovalles in chambers with his pants unzipped and his hands in his underpants, and another complaint from lawyer Christopher T. Millea.

The commission hired lawyer Marc DeSisto to conduct an investigation, which DeSisto said led to the unearthing of a barrage of other complaints.

DeSisto essentially acted as prosecutor during the hearing on the allegations the commission brought. Boston lawyer Mark Berthiaume acted as Ovalles' lead defense attorney.

Testimony at the hearing revealed that Ovalles failed to understand the legal concept of beyond a reasonable doubt; mishandled the mental health calendar; refused to allow a disabled litigant with a cane to approach the bench; and was repeatedly counseled by District Court Chief Judge Jeanne E. LaFazia about a growing number of complaints about his courtroom demeanor.

In testifying, Ovalles denied almost all of the allegations and chalked up the grievances to his strict courtroom oversight and prejudices driven by his Hispanic heritage.

In reaching its recommendations, the commission found Ovalles' testimony "riddled with inconsistencies."

"We believe Chief Judge LaFazia, and we do not believe Judge Ovalles. She was credible, and he was not," the commission wrote.

"His responses to the Chief Judge and his testimony before the Commission demonstrate not only a lack of capacity to reform, but also the inability to accept responsibility for his own actions. It is unfathomable, as Judge Ovalles asserts, that almost every witness testifying for the Commission at the public hearing fabricated each instance of Judge Ovalles’s misconduct," the panel said.

"Not only did Judge Ovalles fail to appreciate the nature of his actions, he was untruthful in his testimony to the Commission regarding the instances of his misconduct. In every aspect of his work environment, Judge Ovalles was disrespectful," the commission wrote, adding that the number of incidents in which he flagrantly demeaned women is "overwhelming."

"Judge Ovalles' treatment of women constitutes sanctionable judicial misconduct," the commission said.

The commission, however, found some of the most scandalous allegations against Ovalles — that he removed his pants in chambers — unproven.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Ovalles, 52, was named to the bench in 2005 by then-Gov. Donald Carcieri. LaFazia relieved Ovalles of his duties in the wake of the investigation, although he continues to receive his $160,018 annual salary.