The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org. July 8, 2019 NJ Judge Under Fire for Defending Privileged Teen Who Filmed Himself Assaulting 16-Year-Old Girl ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A New Jersey family court judge is under fire after he denied a motion to try a 16-year-old for rape as an adult, justifying the decision by saying the perpetrator came from a good family, was an Eagle Scout, attended an "excellent school" and "is clearly a candidate for not just college but probably for a good college." Judge James Troiano also said he did not think the attack was rape despite the attacker filming the assault on the 16-year-old intoxicated girl and sharing the video with friends along with a text message that read "when your first time having sex was rape." The judge also rebuked the girl and her family for bringing charges that could have a "devastating effect" on the attacker's life. An appeals court has, however, reversed Troiano's decision, citing his display of bias because of the teenager's privilege-meaning the unnamed teen could now be indicted and tried in criminal court. .