Laughing Lawyer Kicked Out Of Court

When you're in a courtroom, you really, truly, have to listen to the judge.

It may seem obvious to some, a little authoritarian to others, but when you’re in a courtroom, you really, truly, have to listen to the judge. Their word is pretty much law (as Kim Davis has learned the hard way), so you should get ready to do the court’s bidding — especially if the request seems pretty reasonable.

In Texas, the trial of Dondre Johnson for theft was put on hold, as Judge Elizabeth Beach considered a motion by the defense to recuse herself from the trial. Johnson’s trial is itself pretty interesting, as Fox 4 reports:

He’s accused of taking thousands of dollars from people who paid to have their loved ones cremated, then leaving eight bodies to decay after abandoning the Johnson Family Mortuary.

Yikes (allegedly).

But to get back to the motion for recusal, the basis for the motion was, inter alia, Judge Beach’s decision to ban one member of the defense team from the defense table, for some… questionable conduct. NBC DFW has the scoop:

“Devin AuClair was told by me that she was not going to sit at the counsel table because of unprofessional and undignified conduct for the entire day yesterday,” Beach said in open court. “She was talking loudly throughout the proceedings. She was laughing. She was waiving her arms around. She was turning around talking to people in the gallery. She was passing papers back and forth with the gallery and she was causing a disruption for the entire day. I chastised her several times and then she moved into the gallery and continued to engage in that conduct.”

So, using my handy-dandy judge-to-English dictionary that roughly translates into, “Hahaha, nope. Your motion for recusal is denied.”

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So, when the judge asks you to simmer down, do that.

Testimony Stops in Mortuary Theft Case [NBC DFW]
Motion to recuse judge in funeral home trial denied [Fox 4]

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