On Tuesday, December 16, 2025, the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct announced that Watertown City Court Judge Eric T. Swartz has resigned from his position while under investigation.
Swartz, a part-time judge in Jefferson County, agreed to leave office by December 31, 2025, and has committed never to seek or accept judicial office in the future. The Commission accepted a stipulation to that effect, signed by both Judge Swartz and the Commission’s Administrator on December 2, 2025, with the Commission issuing an order accepting it on December 11, 2025.
The investigation into Judge Swartz began in April 2024, following a complaint alleging that he was suffering from a condition that interfered with his ability to perform his judicial duties. To ensure transparency, Judge Swartz waived the confidentiality provisions typically applicable to Commission proceedings, allowing the stipulation and the Commission’s order of acceptance to be made public.
Judge Swartz’s tenure on the Watertown City Court began in 2021. Prior to that, he served as a Justice of the Watertown Town Court from 2020 to 2021. His term on the City Court was originally set to expire on December 31, 2026.
According to the Commission, it has accepted 159 permanent resignation stipulations since the procedure was instituted in 2003. In addition, since 1978, the Commission has issued 290 admonitions, 358 censures, and 185 removals of judges in New York State.
Commission Administrator Robert H. Tembeckjian commented on the resignation, stating that Judge Swartz’s decision to leave the bench in light of the condition affecting his judicial duties was “commendable.”
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
