High Court judge sacked over affair and misconduct

The Public Functionary Disciplinary Sanction Commission also suspended Lin De-cheng (林德盛) from serving in public office for two years.

The PFDSC's decision, an extremely rare punishment for a public servant investigated but not yet indicted by the prosecutors, came a week after three High Court judges were charged for bribery.

Investigators from the Department of Government Ethics under the Ministry of Justice discovered that Lin visited former Taitung Magistrate Wu Chun-li in May and June in private last year when Wu was the defendant in a corruption trial Lin presided over.

Investigators also found that the married former judge had an abnormally close relationship with a woman surnamed Chen, also a defendant in another trial of Lin's, and had stayed in a hotel with her.

The PFDSC found Lin violated multiple regulations and failed to know better despite his 23 years of experience as a judge and decided to fire him for “not only compromising his personal morality but more importantly that he seriously damaged the image of judges and the reputation of the judiciary.”

Lin tendered his resignation soon after the investigation began but his application would be overruled by the PFDSC's decision, meaning he would not be able to keep his NT$5 million pension.

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