New York Judge Jeffrey Gershuny censured for courtroom deception

The New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct has officially censured Criminal Court Judge Jeffrey Gershuny for an incident involving intentional deception during a courtroom hearing.

During an August 2025 felony gun case hearing in Brooklyn, Gershuny attempted what he described as a “little experiment” to test whether a testifying police officer could distinguish a firearm from another object inside a shopping bag. According to commission documents, Gershuny produced his licensed SIG Sauer P365, removed the magazine, and informed a court officer of his plan to trick the witness. He then hid the pistol on the floor and placed a stapler inside a shopping bag, falsely representing to the witness that the bag contained his firearm.

Despite objections from court officers and supervisors, Gershuny proceeded with the demonstration. Commission administrator Robert H. Tembeckjian stated that the judge failed to uphold the standards of the judiciary, noting that “public confidence in the integrity of the courts depends on judges being honest and above-board.” The commission concluded that Gershuny’s actions constituted an intentional deception of a witness in open court.