Justice's conduct questioned in lawyer's DWI
Makowski affidavit in DWI case is focus
Investigators for the state Commission on Judicial Conduct have begun asking questions about the actions of a State Supreme Court justice who signed an affidavit on behalf of a prominent lawyer charged with drunken driving Sept. 2.
Commission members have been asking people involved in the case about the affidavit Justice Joseph G. Makowski signed, following the DWI arrest of former prosecutor Anne E. Adams, according to multiple sources.
The commission is expected to decide later this month whether to launch a full investigation into the matter, sources added.
The commission has jurisdiction over 3,400 judges and justices of the state Unified Court System. It investigates about 1,500 complaints per year and recommends a wide range of actions against those jurists found guilty of misconduct through formal hearings.
Makowski declined to comment Friday.
The judge filed the affidavit as a witness, after having been with Adams up to roughly half an hour before her arrest. In his affidavit, filed Sept. 11, he repeatedly stated that nothing in her behavior suggested that Adams couldn’t drive safely that night.
Adams, 46, of Angola, who had been mentioned over the summer as a possible judicial candidate, was arrested on a charge of aggravated DWI on Sept. 2 in the Town of Hamburg.
She pleaded not guilty during her arraignment, and stands accused of having a blood-alcohol content of 0.19 percent after her arrest.
Four sources in Buffalo’s legal community previously told The Buffalo News it was unusual for a judge to file written information in another judge’s case, especially before the defendant is arraigned.
It’s more common for witnesses to make statements after police contact them and ask them what happened in a case. But while unusual, filing such an affidavit isn’t necessarily improper, those sources emphasized.
In his affidavit, Makowski stated he had been with Adams from 2 to 5 p.m. that day on a professional basis. He then met with her from 5:30 to 7:15 p.m. at Shanghai Red’s restaurant to talk about changes Adams was considering for a University at Buffalo Law School program.
While they were at the waterfront restaurant together, he stated, she ordered two glasses of wine and a glass of water with lime.
Makowski also stated that there was nothing in her speech, gait or mannerisms that raised his concerns about her ability to drive that evening.
They left the restaurant in separate vehicles.
A Town of Hamburg police officer said he pulled her vehicle over at about 7:45 p.m. that night on Route 5, after he saw her Ford Thunderbird convertible weaving from lane to lane, nearly striking a guardrail, according to town police reports.
In his affidavit, Makowski suggested that Adams’ behavior that night was more consistent with the results of a blood-alcohol test administered by Adams’ own physician about two hours after her arrest. The doctor filed an affidavit saying that her blood-alcohol content was less than 0.01 percent.
Based on that figure, Makowski wrote that he believes any trial would result in her acquittal.
“Ms. Adams has a 20-year, high-profile career as both a prosecutor and defense attorney,” Makowski wrote in his affidavit. “She also holds a full-time faculty position at UB Law School. These charges, even if resulting in an acquittal, would seriously damage her reputation in the community and future professional prospects. For these reasons, I believe a dismissal in the interests of justice is warranted.”
Investigators for the commission are asking local officials about Makowski’s contention that the charges should be dismissed and about his friendship with Adams, sources say.
rmccarthy@buffnews.com gwarner@buffnews.com
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