A Spanish judge best known for indicting Augusto Pinochet and Osama bin Laden denies any wrongdoing after being paid $200,000 for work at a U.S. university while drawing his salary in Madrid, a court official said Wednesday.
Judge Baltasar Garzon insists he acted in good faith, hid nothing and reported both sources of income to tax authorities in both countries, said the official at the National Court, where Garzon is based.
A judicial oversight board is investigating Garzon for allegedly failing to warn his superiors he would be getting paid for teaching and lecturing at New York University during a sabbatical in 2005 and 2006.
Judicial officials say Garzon received …more than $200,000 in salary, travel expenses and school tuition for his daughter during that stay
… Spanish judges must tell the judicial oversight board if they will receive an outside salary during leaves of absence, the board said Tuesday in announcing the probe.
Council investigators have a month to decide whether to drop the case or recommend that Garzon be penalized. Punishment could range from a fine or suspension to outright expulsion from the court.