A city judge in Lackawanna, New York, has resigned after allegations resurfaced that he staged a fake court proceeding to dismiss a friend’s traffic ticket. This marks the second time he has stepped down, and he has now pledged never to return to the bench.
Associate Judge Louis P. Violanti of the Lackawanna City Court resigned on January 23, following a complaint from the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct. He had been appointed to a six-year term in March 2024, but the complaint traced back to an investigation from his prior tenure as a city judge in 2013.
The allegations stem from a Christmas Eve 2012 church function, where Violanti spoke with a friend, Daniel E. Endress, who had received a ticket for driving with a suspended registration. Violanti reportedly assured Endress, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”
Shortly after, he arranged a staged proceeding in which police officer John Hruby, serving as courtroom security, pretended to be Endress. During the fraudulent hearing on January 11, 2013, Hruby played the role of the defendant, claiming that the registration suspension was a mistake by the vehicle’s insurer and emphasizing his responsibilities as a family man and dockworker.
A court transcript records Hruby, in character as Endress, making statements about his financial struggles and long work hours, referencing dock work and economic hardship.
After the fabricated proceeding, Violanti dismissed the case, citing an expectation of how the district attorney’s office would handle such a matter despite no prosecutor being present. The Commission later determined this was done based on fictitious evidence.
Violanti resigned in March 2013 after learning of an ongoing investigation by the Appellate Division, stepping down before a final ruling could be made. In February 2014, the Appellate Division suspended his law license for two years due to what was deemed “serious misconduct.” His license was reinstated in March 2016, and in 2024, he was reappointed as a judge by the city’s mayor, who described him as highly qualified and deserving of a second chance.
However, the Commission noted that when he first resigned, it was without a formal pledge never to return, allowing him to be reappointed later. The legal time constraints at the time prevented the Commission from completing a removal process that would have permanently barred him from serving as a judge.
With his latest resignation, the Commission confirmed that Violanti is now permanently barred from returning to the bench. The Commission’s administrator condemned the misconduct, stating that orchestrating a fake court hearing with a stand-in defendant and no prosecutor was an outrageous abuse of power. He further noted that had the Commission not been limited by legal deadlines in 2013, Violanti would have been removed back then and constitutionally ineligible to return.
With his permanent departure, the matter is now closed, and Violanti’s legal career as a judge has come to an end.
