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Judge Forces Lawyer To Write 'I Was A Bad Boy' 25 Times

A penalty worthy of Bart Simpson.

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Well, he didn’t exactly write “I was a bad boy” over and over, because lawyers had to make everything just a little bit more complex, but he may as well have. And before you all start speculating, this is a cast about contempt, not another judge with a penchant for sex games.

Technically, attorney Anthony Baker’s punishment for disrupting the final day of a domestic violence trial required writing out the following 25 times on a sheet of paper and turning it in to the judge:

I will not engage in conduct that is prejudicial to the administration of justice or in any other conduct that adversely reflects on my fitness to practice law. Prof. Con. R. 8.4 (d) & (h)

I shall not engage in conduct intended to disrupt a tribunal or engage in undignified or discourteous conduct that is degrading to a tribunal. Prof. Con. R. 3.5 (a)(5) & (a)(6)

For his part, Baker was happy to get the punishment he did, telling Cleveland.com that he’d expected to be jailed for his shenanigans. He stood by the reason for his protest, but fully admitted that he was out of line. When Common Pleas Court Judge Nancy Fuerst refused to instruct the jury on self-defense laws in the trial of a former cop accused of beating his wife, Baker engaged in a series of disruptions to keep the trial from moving forward. The cop was sentenced to 18 months plus an additional four months for violating the parole stemming from his last 18 month jag for assaulting a guy he arrested.

Judge doles out Bart Simpson-esque punishment to lawyer held in contempt for acting out at trial in Cleveland [Cleveland.com]

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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