Colombian judge suspended for appearing half naked in Zoom court hearing

This week, a Colombian judge who was known for posting graphic images of herself on social media received a three-month punishment for smoking in bed and appearing half-naked during a virtual court proceeding. Judge Vivian Polania was found to have broken several administrative rules, according to a ruling made on Tuesday by the Norte de Santander Judicial Disciplinary Commission, according to the Spanish-language news source Infobae. Polania, 34, made national headlines last week when she appeared on a Zoom call during a court proceeding regarding a car bombing that targeted an army brigade in the city of Ccuta in June 2021, lounging in what appeared to be her underwear and smoking. The disciplinary committee started an investigation into Polonia's NSFW display after the judge's scantily clad video quickly went viral. The panel's 16-page decision states that Polonia turned on her camera after keeping it off for almost an hour, showing her lying in bed in a "deplorable" state, looking "disheveled with sleepy eyes," and slurring her speech. Polonia quickly turned off the camera when a witness in the case informed the judge that it had been activated. According to the committee, Polonia was found to be unfit to fulfill her duties as a result of her disrespect for the parties at the hearing and violation of the judicial dress code, which led to the decision to put her on unpaid leave through the month of February. The court's decision stated that the circumstance was "not consistent with the care, respect, and circumspection with which a judge of the republic must dispense justice, suggesting a blatant lack of regard from the official." After the commotion generated by the video, Polonia finally spoke out, denying that she was half-naked and said that she had to lie down during the hearing because she was having an anxiety attack and her blood pressure was too low. In an interview with Blu Radio, Polonia said that she was chronically overworked, which contributed to her mental health issues. She added that because of the way she dresses, she has been harassed and threatened with disciplinary action by other judges at Ccuta for a very long time. Before her account was deactivated this week, Polonia had more than 30,000 followers on Instagram, where she had posted risqué pictures of herself wearing BDSM-inspired clothing and skimpy underwear while displaying her 37 tattoos. This was the subject of an earlier investigation. The judge claimed in an interview with the Colombian publication Semana that upon arriving in Ccuta, she could not bear to wear pants due to the oppressive heat, so she elected to wear shorts and T-shirts, but she claimed it made some people around her uncomfortable. When Polonia learned about CrossFit at the same time, the rigorous exercise program changed the shape of her body and she began dressing in "length, gorgeous" dresses to work at the Palace of Justice. However, Polonia claimed that her new fashion choices had also drawn criticism for being overly sexy and that she had been advised to cover up with a judicial robe.