Point Pleasant Beach judge, in Facebook trouble, says he didn't know 'likes' remained

TRENTON - The Point Pleasant Beach municipal court judge charged with ethical violations stemming from his personal Facebook account said much of the objectionable online activity occurred before he was appointed to his current judgeship, and his failure to remove prohibited material was not deliberate, but rather due to his limited technical knowledge.

Judge Robert M. LePore, 71, of Point Pleasant Beach, in a response to a complaint filed against him by the state Supreme Court's Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct, said he scoured his Facebook account three times, going back a dozen or so years to remove posts that could be considered unethical, and also "unfriended" people who might be considered objectionable, but he did not search on those he liked or followed.

"Respondent's unfamiliarity with the technical aspects of Facebook contributed to this," LePore's attorney, Robert Ramsey, wrote in the formal response, which was filed last week and made public Monday.

The advisory committee, in its complaint filed Oct. 26, accused Lepore of violating the state's code of judicial conduct through his Facebook "likes" of pro-police groups, political candidates and businesses, saying the online activity cast doubt on his ability to be impartial on the bench.

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"Respondent's Facebook posts and reposts included expressions of support for law enforcement, including imagery associated with 'Blue Lives Matter' and similar social movements, and contained multiple references to partisan political viewpoints with which respondent expressed agreement and/or endorsed," the complaint said.

Ramsey, in his response on behalf of LePore, said many of the posts in support of law enforcement occurred before the respondent was appointed Point Pleasant Beach's municipal court judge in 2020 and was meant to be in support of his son, who is a detective for the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, and his law-enforcement friends.

"Although not subject to proof, respondent can represent that to the best of his knowledge, the majority of those 'likes' and/or 'follows' did not occur during the time period when he was a municipal court judge," the response said.

While LePore went through the trouble of unfriending everyone related to law enforcement when initially faced with allegations of ethical violations, he was not savvy enough to eliminate those he "liked" or "followed," it said.

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"Upon reviewing the formal complaint, respondent had to ask his spouse, who located those options on his Facebook page for him," the response said. "However, to delete, block, unlike or unfollow, respondent had to use tutorials that he and his spouse found on Safari.

"To the extent that any objectionable or improper postings remained on respondent's Facebook page following his efforts to purge them, his failures are attributable to mere negligence as opposed to purposeful misconduct," the response said.

"With the help of his daughter, who is more knowledgeable about Facebook, he has now taken steps to remove, delete, block, unlike and unfollow any and all groups affiliated with law enforcement, individual police officers and members of the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office from his Facebook page," Ramsey wrote in the response.

LePore was also cited by the committee for liking a political advertisement for a slate of Republican candidates in the 10th legislative district.

Ramsey said the advertisement was from a time before LePore was a judge, and one of the candidates has been a personal friend of LePore for 30 years. Despite that, LePore has now unfriended him, the response said.

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Regarding LePore's apparent endorsements of businesses, including law firms, Realtors and mortgage companies, Ramsey said LePore spent the majority of his legal career as a real estate attorney before retiring from private practice two years ago.

"As a result, he knew and became 'friends' with, 'liked,' or 'followed' all of the above individuals," the judge's response said.

"Working with his daughter, he has taken all steps to eliminate such postings and can assure the committee that there will be no such postings in the future," the response said.

LePore has requested a hearing before the committee.

Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Point Pleasant Beach judge says he cleaned up his Facebook 'likes'