Man suing for age bias says judge too old

NEW YORK, Oct. 24 (UPI) -- A 60-year-old New York man suing a music competition for age discrimination claims the 88-year-old judge assigned to his case is "unable to function."

Martin Stoner, a violinist suing the non-profit Young Concert Artists for only allowing musicians less than one-third his age, said he admits trying to get U.S. District Judge Robert Patterson, 88, off his case may seem hypocritical, but the judge is "slow-witted and unable to function," the New York Daily News reported Monday.

"Judge Patterson could barely see unless he put his face almost on top of a document," Stoner wrote in his judicial complaint.

"Judge Patterson should be removed from the bench, both because of his mental and physical limitations," Stoner wrote. "With all due respect, he may have been a very learned jurist in his day."

Patterson declined to comment but colleagues defended his skills on the bench as beyond reproach.