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The New Jersey Supreme Court has censured a municipal court judge for attempting to use the cloak of his office to talk his way out of a drunken-driving arrest.

In addition to the censure, Wilfredo Benitez is temporarily barred from presiding over drunken-driving cases, and may not apply to the court to hear such cases until Sept. 7, 2019.

The censure order was made public Sept. 7. It follows the July 31 recommendations by the court's Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct.

“We find, based on our review of the significant evidence of record, that those asserted disciplinary charges have been proven by clear and convincing evidence,” said the ACJC presentment, signed by its chairwoman, former state Supreme Court Justice Virginia Long.

The ACJC quoted the court's 2001 ruling in In re Samay: “As our Supreme Court made clear  almost two decades ago, those fortunate enough to hold judicial office are bestowed with tremendous power 'on the condition that [they] not abuse or misuse it to further a personal objective.'”

Benitez, who ultimately was acquitted of drunken driving, has long sat as a municipal court judge in East Orange and Belleville, and remains in those positions at present, according to the presentment.

Benitez's attorney, Brian Molloy, of Woodbridge's Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer, was unavailable for comment, and attempts to reach Benitez were unsuccessful.