Ex-Judge Fired for Gay Porn Side-Hustle Fights Back
Former judge Gregory Locke took to social media to insist he broke no ethics rules, and did not perform any on-camera activities during work hours.
The former New York City judge who was fired for moonlighting as an Internet adult performer clapped back at his critics over the weekend on Twitter.
In the lengthy social media post, which appeared on both his PG-rated personal Twitter account and his X-rated personal account, Gregory Locke, a 33-year-old former administrative law judge, defended the two tweets that launched an investigation into his private life.
The investigation turned up two porn-for-pay accounts on OnlyFans and JustFor.Fans.
It also turned up a PG-rated personal Twitter account and an X-rated Twitter account showing him engaging in sex with other men and promoting videos he’d previously posted to his OnlyFans and JustFor.Fans platforms.
Locke was fired from his job for “unprofessional behavior,” with many of his critics noting that city rules require administrative law judges to conduct their extra-judicial activities in a manner “so that they do not cast reasonable doubt” on their ability to act impartially and “do not detract from the dignity of judicial office.”
According to Locke, he never engaged in his sexual exploits while he was on the clock. Additionally, he claims he had no ethical requirement to abstain from commenting on politics.
“The ethics rules guiding New York City Administrative Law Judges do not require a judge to abstain from politics or political speech. I remain steadfast in my insistence that my tweets, even if not polite, did not violate any ethical guidelines,” he wrote in a tweet last weekend. “The most vulnerable members of the queer community are fighting for their lives, and the only people offended by my tweets are those more interested in policing language than opposing policies and politics which kill.”
Referring to City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino (R-Queens), a vocal anti-LGBTQ advocate who has been especially critical of Drag Queen Story Hours and who instigated the investigation into Locke, the former judge said it was “disappointing that the City of New York decided to take the side of a documented bigot instead of seizing an opportunity to stand against ever-growing anti-LGBTQ hatred, particularly the fervent hatred toward the trans and nonbinary communities.”
He also noted that his firing was the result of Paladino using her “influence to win this battle,” a fact which he said underscores how important it is “to stand up against bigotry and ensure the protection of the rights of the most vulnerable.”
Locke has said he plans to continue to use his legal skills to represent paid clients as a lawyer in private practice, although he will also offer pro bono services to members of the LGBTQ community who cannot afford it.
Whether he can keep his license to practice law remains to be seen, as Paladino has previously said she intends to push for his disbarment.
“This city must have absolute faith in its courts at every level,” Paladino told The New York Post when the story of Locke’s side gigs first broke. “Employing individuals like Mr. Locke in positions of legal authority only corrodes the people’s trust in the professionalism and impartiality of our institutions.”
Locke has also refused to apologize for his off-hour activities, asserting that he will continue posting content to OnlyFans and JustFor.Fans.
“Sex work, including porn, is not shameful, and I will not filter my thoughts and actions to appease those who enact harm on my community,” he concluded.
See the full text of his tweet below:
Last week, I was fired from my job as a New York City Administrative Law Judge. This came after a member of the City Council took issue with tweets I wrote in response to their bigoted and misguided statements about drag queens and about the queer community at large. The Council…
— gregory ◡̈ (@popLOCKEdropit) April 3, 2023
Last week, I was fired from my job as a New York City Administrative Law Judge. This came after a member of the City Council took issue with tweets I wrote in response to their bigoted and misguided statements about drag queens and about the queer community at large. The Council member and news outlets also took this opportunity to expose me for unrelated x-rated work, none of which occurred during or at work for the City.
It is disappointing that the City of New York decided to take the side of a documented bigot instead of seizing an opportunity to stand against ever-growing anti-LGBTQ hatred, particularly the fervent hatred toward the trans and nonbinary communities. The ethics rules guiding New York City Administrative Law Judges do not require a judge to abstain from politics or political speech. I remain steadfast in my insistence that my tweets, even if not polite, did not violate any ethical guidelines.
The most vulnerable members of the queer community are fighting for their lives, and the only people offended by my tweets are those more interested in policing language than opposing policies and politics which kill.
I will continue my private work, using my legal skills to represent paid clients, and to offer pro bono services for members of the LGBTQ community who need it most. I will also continue my work on OF and JFF.
Sex work, including porn, is not shameful, and I will not filter my thoughts and actions to appease those who enact harm on my community. This started not as a political disagreement, but as a human one. A politician used their influence to win this battle, underscoring just how important it is — now more than ever — to stand up against bigotry and ensure the protection of the rights of the most vulnerable.
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