New Jersey Judge Faces Investigation for TikTok Videos

A New Jersey judge is being investigated over “inappropriate” videos he posted on his TikTok account, according to a complaint filed by the Supreme Court advisory committee on Friday. Superior Court Judge Gary Wilcox reportedly filmed and posted more than 40 TikTok videos under the alias Sal Tortorella between April 2021 and March 2023, possibly harming the public’s perception of the judicial office, the complaint says.

Wilcox’s TikTok account appears to have been deleted, but according to the complaint, the videos allegedly displayed content filmed in Wilcox’s chambers and the courthouse and included violent, sexual, and misogynistic references. In one of the videos, Wilcox posed partially dressed in his bed while many of the videos show him lip-syncing songs containing profanity, racist terms, and sexual references including the song Jump by Rihanna and Sure Thing by Miguel.

Law books were visible behind Wilcox in one video, the complaint says, which shows him wearing a suit and tie and appeared to be filmed from his chambers while he sang the lyrics: “All my life, I’ve been waiting for somebody to whoop my ass. I mean business! You think you can run up on me and whip my monkey ass?” In another video, Wilcox wore a Beavis and Butt-Head t-shirt while the Nas song, Get Down, plays in the background.

“By his conduct in posting these and similar videos to TikTok, [Wilcox] exhibited poor judgment and demonstrated disrespect for the Judiciary and an inability to conform to the high standards of conduct expected of judges,” the complaint states.

Wilcox, who reaches the mandatory age of retirement next year, could face a reprimand or dismissal from the bench for violating the Code of Judicial Conduct which the complaint says requires judges to uphold “the integrity and independence of the Judiciary,” and “avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety.” The complaint adds that the code also requires judges to conduct themselves in a way that “would not cast reasonable doubt” on their ability to “act impartially as a judge, demean the judicial office, or interfere with the proper performance of judicial duties.”

It is possible that Wilcox’s team will cite his right to Freedom of Speech, Alexander Shalom, a senior lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, told The New York Times. “Judge Wilcox is entitled to due process,” Shalom said, adding, “As he goes through that process, there will be lots of significant issues raised about free speech and free expression and what actually does impugn the stature of the judiciary.”

Wilcox was admitted to the New Jersey bar three decades ago and rose to his position as a Superior Court judge in 2011. His lawyer, Robert Hille, did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment, but told The Times that the songs Wilcox sang in his videos are by “mainstream performers” whose music is widely listened to by the public and said, “Clearly, it elicits a different response depending on who is listening.” He continued, “I don’t think that at the end of the day, anybody is going to believe there was any desire to do any harm here.” He added, “Hindsight is 20-20.”

A New Jersey judge is being investigated over “inappropriate” videos he posted on his TikTok account, according to a complaint filed by the Supreme Court advisory committee on Friday. Superior Court Judge Gary Wilcox reportedly filmed and posted more than 40 TikTok videos under the alias Sal Tortorella between April 2021 and March 2023, possibly harming the public’s perception of the judicial office, the complaint says.

Wilcox’s TikTok account appears to have been deleted, but according to the complaint, the videos allegedly displayed content filmed in Wilcox’s chambers and the courthouse and included violent, sexual, and misogynistic references. In one of the videos, Wilcox posed partially dressed in his bed while many of the videos show him lip-syncing songs containing profanity, racist terms, and sexual references including the song Jump by Rihanna and Sure Thing by Miguel.

Law books were visible behind Wilcox in one video, the complaint says, which shows him wearing a suit and tie and appeared to be filmed from his chambers while he sang the lyrics: “All my life, I’ve been waiting for somebody to whoop my ass. I mean business! You think you can run up on me and whip my monkey ass?” In another video, Wilcox wore a Beavis and Butt-Head t-shirt while the Nas song, Get Down, plays in the background.

“By his conduct in posting these and similar videos to TikTok, [Wilcox] exhibited poor judgment and demonstrated disrespect for the Judiciary and an inability to conform to the high standards of conduct expected of judges,” the complaint states.

Wilcox, who reaches the mandatory age of retirement next year, could face a reprimand or dismissal from the bench for violating the Code of Judicial Conduct which the complaint says requires judges to uphold “the integrity and independence of the Judiciary,” and “avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety.” The complaint adds that the code also requires judges to conduct themselves in a way that “would not cast reasonable doubt” on their ability to “act impartially as a judge, demean the judicial office, or interfere with the proper performance of judicial duties.”

It is possible that Wilcox’s team will cite his right to Freedom of Speech, Alexander Shalom, a senior lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, told The New York Times. “Judge Wilcox is entitled to due process,” Shalom said, adding, “As he goes through that process, there will be lots of significant issues raised about free speech and free expression and what actually does impugn the stature of the judiciary.”

Wilcox was admitted to the New Jersey bar three decades ago and rose to his position as a Superior Court judge in 2011. His lawyer, Robert Hille, did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment, but told The Times that the songs Wilcox sang in his videos are by “mainstream performers” whose music is widely listened to by the public and said, “Clearly, it elicits a different response depending on who is listening.” He continued, “I don’t think that at the end of the day, anybody is going to believe there was any desire to do any harm here.” He added, “Hindsight is 20-20.”