Chief Justice John Broderick issued this statement on Jan. 26, 2005, following the resignation of District Court Judge Franklin Jones.

I believe that the decision by Judge Jones to resign is the appropriate end to events that have caused so much pain and so much embarrassment to so many, most particularly the victims in this case. Judge Jones has done the right thing-for himself, his family, the court system and for the women involved-by stepping down from the bench.

While Judge Jones contributed many years of valuable service to the court system, his conduct last May cannot be taken back. I believe his resignation is a necessary step in acknowledging the seriousness of his actions. As Chief Justice, I apologize to all those affected by Judge Jones' conduct and especially to the victims, who had the courage to step forward and as a result, had to endure so much unwanted public scrutiny these last several months.

Judge Jones' conduct has no place anywhere in our society. I have instructed the Office of General Counsel and the Administrative Judges to move forward with me as expeditiously and thoroughly as possible with the review and revision of our current sexual harassment policy, a process that began prior to the incident that led to today's developments. We will also seek guidance and recommendations from experts outside the judicial branch and we will take every step, as best we can, to ensure these events never happen again.

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