Judge Murphy agrees to leave the bench

Judge Murphy agrees to leave the bench
August 20, 2008 03:01 PM
By Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff

Superior Court Judge Ernest B. Murphy, who won a $2 million libel verdict against the Boston Herald and is now facing a possible reprimand and fine for writing threatening letters to the newspaper, has admitted that he is "permanently disabled'' and will not return to the bench in Massachusetts.

In a three-page order released today, the Supreme Judicial Court wrote that it has accepted an agreement between Murphy and the state Commission on Judicial Conduct that says the judge is "permanently disabled from performing his judicial duties'' and will no longer sit as a state judge.

In February 2005, a jury found that the Herald had maliciously published false and defamatory material about Murphy in a series of stories in 2002. The stories, quoting anonymous sources, said that the judge had instructed lawyers during a conference in his chambers to tell a 14-year-old rape victim to "get over it.'' Murphy testified at the trial that he had actually said the victim would need help getting over the attack. The judge said the stories prompted a deluge of hate mail and threats to his family.

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