'Porngate' Justice Seamus McCaffery Is Laughing His Way to the Bank
Justice Seamus McCaffery, suspended by his colleagues in the wake of a pornographic email scandal, resigned in October. It seemed like a sad end to the man's long career in public service and on the bench.
And to some, it seemed like a bit of an overreaction. (Though, on the other hand, if the extorting-a-fellow-justice claims were true, forced retirement was exactly what he deserved.)
Overreaction or not, how's he doing now? Financially, he's doing pretty damn well.
Ca$hing Out
According to The Associated Press, McCaffery cashed out $455,000 of his own retirement contributions, plus interest earlier this week.
Good start, right? It gets better: He'll also collect an $11,000 per month public pension, thanks to years of service time accrued in the military, as a judge in Philadelphia, and on the state Superior Court. He was also a Philadelphia cop and, of course, a state Supreme Court justice.
What Does One Do With a Half-Million Dollars?
Back in October, when he resigned, Justice McCaffery stated, in no uncertain terms, that he had no plans to return to the bench, reports the AP.
"In light of my immediate intention to embark on other professional endeavors and paths, I want to make clear that under no circumstances would I request or agree to take senior status in the Pennsylvania judicial system, nor would I ever be a candidate for appointment or election to any Pennsylvania judicial office in the future," McCaffery wrote in his resignation letter to Gov. Tom Corbett.
An $11,000-per-month pension buys a lot of financial freedom, and with his considerable legal and judicial experience, we'd imagine there's plenty of demand for his services. It should be interesting to see if he ends up as a professor, or an attorney, or if he simply chooses to retire and enjoy life on the public dime.
Related Resources:
- 'Porngate' Just Became the Greatest Judicial Scandal of Our Time (FindLaw's U.S. Third Circuit Blog)
- We Finally Got the Name of Pa.'s 'Porngate' Supreme Court Justice (FindLaw's U.S. Third Circuit Blog)
- Anyone Who Has Ever Taken Naughty Pics Has Violated This Fed. Law (FindLaw's U.S. Third Circuit Blog)