The California commission on judicial performance voted 10-0 to impose a public admonishment on Thursday, saying superior court judge Derek Johnson's comments were inappropriate and a breach of judicial ethics.
Johnson made the comments in the case of a man who threatened to mutilate the face and genitals of his ex-girlfriend with a heated screwdriver and beat her with a metal baton before committing rape, forced oral copulation, and other crimes. Though the woman reported the criminal threats the next day, she did not report the rape until 17 days later.
"I'm not a gynaecologist, but I can tell you something: If someone doesn't want to have sexual intercourse, the body shuts down. The body will not permit that to happen unless a lot of damage is inflicted, and we heard nothing about that in this case," Johnson said.
In an apology to the commission, Johnson said his comments on the case were inappropriate and were the result of his frustration during an argument with a prosecutor over the defendant's sentence.
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