Kozinski A No-Show

Alex Kozinski, the chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, was supposed to be on hand Saturday for an American Constitution Society panel Rights in Conflict: Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Religious Liberty.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Kozinski was a no-show.

The judge has been under fire in recent days after disclosures that he posted sexually explicit material on a Web site he administered. The revelations came as he was about to preside over a high-profile obscenity trial. The California-based judge, one of the most colorful on the federal bench even before the porn controversy, announced Friday that he would recuse himself from the trial.

The moderator at the ACS panel, Preeta Bansal, a Washington partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, was asked why Kozinski didn't show. Bunsal played it straight.

"He's probably busy," she said.