A former Philadelphia Traffic Court judge has been removed from office and barred from future judicial service after a federal grand jury investigation revealed he gave preferential treatment to certain defendants in traffic court based on ex parte requests, the Court of Judicial Discipline ruled Feb. 14.

Former Traffic Court Judge Michael Lowry was convicted of making a false declaration, or perjury, in July 2014, and he was sentenced to 20 months of imprisonment with a year of supervised release and 100 hours of community service in January 2015.