Judge Randall Rogers at the bench in East Texas.
In August we shared the
story of Josten Bundy and Elizabeth Jaynes. In short, Josten got in a fight with Elizabeth's ex-boyfriend and found himself in front of Judge Randall Rogers. Rather than a typical sentence for an assault charge, the judge put Bundy on probation with some unusual stipulations—Bundy was ordered to write bible verses and marry his girlfriend:
Judge Rogers asked Bundy if he was married to Jaynes and then said, “You know, as a part of my probation, you’re going to have to marry her…within 30 days.”
The young couple had already discussed marriage and frightened Bundy would go to jail and lose his job, they got married in a hurry. It happened so fast, many of their close relatives weren't able to make it to the ceremony. After their story made news, other people who'd appeared before Judge Rogers have started to come forward claiming that he
also ordered them to get married:
Michelle Powell, of Chandler, watched news reports of Bundy and Jaynes in disbelief.
"It was so much like my case," Powell said. "I was heartbroken for them, because I know the pain."
Powell and her boyfriend had been accused of shoplifting. She was facing two years probation and Judge Rogers included a provision that she could not get within 100 feet of her boyfriend as long as she was on probation. He then helpfully suggested they could get married within two weeks.
"It’s like a life sentence," Powell said. "Even though I don’t mind being married for the life, it wasn’t supposed to be forced on me. It’s hard that you didn’t get to plan it that way you wanted to plan it."
Benjerman Bull faced a similar sentence after a shoplifting arrest. Although he and his girlfriend lived together, the judge put the same probation restrictions on them, essentially forcing them to get married. That marriage did not work out. Benjerman Bull suffered a asthma attack that left him on life support and he eventually passed away. Bull's father was outraged that despite their separation, she was still in charge of making medical decisions, keeping him on life support:
"It upset me quite a bit knowing that he was already brain dead and was not going to survive," Bill said. "That marriage certificate enabled her to keep him alive longer and for no reason. My son would not have wanted to live that way."
An east Texas attorney says the marriage orders are in
no way legal:
Attorney Blake Bailey, who practices constitutional law, said an order to marry is not legal.
“To say you're not going to be criminally punished if you get married is way out of left field,” said Bailey. “It sounds like the old days of shotgun weddings, but not even the judge is capable of enforcing, what he thinks is best for some people in his court.”