ALBANY — The state watchdog that probes misconduct allegations against New York judges says 13 jurists faced public disciplinary action last year and 12 others resigned while under investigation.

And even though the number of complaints was higher than usual, members of the judiciary, overall, appear to be doing a good job meeting their ethical obligations, according to Robert Tembeckjian, administrator for the state Commission on Judicial Conduct.

The commission’s annual report for 2017 says a total of 1,944 complaints were registered against judges last year. The average number of complaints yearly for the past decade has been 1,856.

But the number of judges who end up facing discipline has been relatively static, Tembeckjian noted.

“I think the judges are much more sensitive to their ethical obligations now than they used to be, in part because they know they will be disciplined if they cross the line,” Tembeckian said in an interview.

PANEL’S POWER

The commission has the authority to remove, admonish and censure judges at all levels of the court system. It also has the power to compel the retirement of judges due to disability.

The panel’s strongest action in 2016 was the removal of the local judge for Spring Valley and Ramapo, Alan Simon. The commission determined he used his position to “bully, harass, threaten and intimidate his court staff, his co-judge and other village officials and employees with whom he dealt in an official capacity.”

Simon fought the determination, but it was affirmed by the New York State Court of Appeals.

One judge who was publicly admonished last year, Oswego County Judge Walter Hafner Jr., was disciplined for making “inappropriate and condescending remarks” about a teenage victim of sexual assault while presiding at the trial of the accused rapist. He remains a judge.

Getting a similar public scolding was New Lisbon Justice Bruce Moskos in Otsego County. He drew the commission’s attention after he entered a county building with his licensed gun, contending he was exempt from rules prohibiting the possession of weapons on county property, the report noted.

Moskos remains a judge and did not seek review of the discipline from the Court of Appeals.

63 RESIGNATIONS

Since 1975, complaints have led to disciplinary action against 848 judges across the state, and an additional 63 have resigned through what the commission calls “public stipulations.”

The resignations linked to a commission probe in recent years include the decision by former Schuyler Falls Town Judge Richard Reome Sr. to step down.

The commission, at the time, said it was looking into allegations that Roeme engaged in improper out-of-court communications, reduced charges against defendants without the consent of prosecutors and expressed bias in favor of police officers.

In resigning in 2012, Reome cited health reasons and noted, “I have done my best to handle my position with pride and integrity.”

Reome said then that the allegations would require a formal trial and that he “made the decision to resign rather than have to endure the physical and emotional stress that would undoubtedly accompany a trial.”

LONG PROCESS

It is not unusual for investigations that conclude with the removal of a judge to extend for two years or longer.

In 2007, then Niagara City Court Judge Robert Restaino was removed after the commission said he acted like a “petty tyrant” for sending 46 people to jail because no one in his courtroom would admit to being the owner of a phone that rang amid a 2005 domestic-violence hearing.

The commission’s report on Restaino drew international headlines. The former judge continues to practice law.

MOST AREN’T LAWYERS

Of the 13 judges disciplined in 2016, five were non-lawyer judges who had presided in village or town courts, and the other eight were lawyers, four of them assigned to higher courts.

About 61 percent of the part-time judges for town and village courts in New York are not lawyers, though all are required to get training once elected to office, according to the commission.

All told, the state has some 3,150 judges.

More than 1,100 of the complaints fielded by the commission came from litigants and others who disagreed with rulings — a gripe that does not fall within the scope of what the commission was set up to review, the annual report noted.

The commission is also empowered to refer complaints to other agencies.

Last year, the commission sent 27 matters to the state Office of Court Administration, most of them involving poor record-keeping and other administrative issues, according to the annual report.

Joe Mahoney covers the New York Statehouse for CNHI’s newspapers and websites. Reach him at jmahoney@cnhi.com