DA: Judge admits to stealing woman's underwear

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - Suffolk County District Judge Robert Cicale pleaded not guilty, posted bail, and walked out of court on Friday from the other side of the bench. Call it a lapse in judgment: a bizarre burglary involving the judge, who admitted he is a serial underwear stealer.

"This is an individual who swore to uphold the law and violated it in a very serious way," Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy Sini said.  

In a written confession, Cicale, 49, told police that on several occasions he broke into a home across the street and stole women's underpants out of a hamper.

The 23-year-old victim was an intern for Cicale when he served as Islip's town attorney.

"The victim was home alone and she heard someone in the residence. The defendant went to her bedroom," Sini said. "I believe she said, 'Hello?' And when he realized that there was someone actually in the home, he fled the home."

When officers arrested Cicale on Thursday, he was carrying several pairs of underwear and acknowledged that he has urges to steal underpants, investigators said.

Defense attorney William Wexler said his client, a married father of three, is committed to the law and is an "all-around decent person."

"His reputation throughout the court is stellar. Every judge, every lawyer respects him," Wexler said. "We just have to see how the process plays out."

In a phone interview, Christopher Brocato, the president of the Suffolk County Criminal Bar Association, said Cicale has been a judge since 2015.

"He's a great guy and he has a great family," Brocato said. "He's beloved in the legal community."

The victim's family asked for privacy.

A neighbor said the case is disturbing.

"He's violated a public trust here. He's supposed to be upholding the law and he's been breaking the law—serially it seems," William Bloom told Fox 5. "I would think that he should be removed from the bench."

Cicale posted $25,000 bail. But he must follow a judge's orders and stay 100 feet away from the woman's home and wear a GPS tracking device. He was temporarily relieved of his judicial duties. The case has been referred to the Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, to determine whether he will be suspended.