Following comments made by New Jersey judges James Troiano and Marcia Silva regarding two cases of sexual assault involving minors, Assembly Democrats Lisa Swain and Chris Tully (both D- Bergen, Passaic) called for their removal from the bench:
“There simply is no excuse for the entirely inappropriate and unprofessional conduct of James Troiano and Marcia Silva during cases involving the alleged sexual assault of two young girls.
“Everyone should be outraged on behalf of victims whose traumatic experiences were minimized by the injudiciously callous remarks of two seasoned judges. Both of them should have demonstrated sensitivity to the subject matter.
“Silva believed the alleged rape of a 12-year-old led to no “physical, mental or emotional” injuries “beyond losing her virginity,” while Troiano dismissed an alleged perpetrator’s own text calling his actions ‘rape’ as a kid “saying stupid crap to his friends.” How the two judges could downplay these alleged sexual assaults as anything less than the horrendous violations they were is beyond comprehension.
“There is no room in the New Jersey court of law for officials who cannot understand just how serious rape is. Without reservation, we call for their immediate removal from the bench.”