Here's something outrageous from a courtroom in (surprise!) Mississippi. Jeff Weill, a local county circuit judge, held a local public defender, Chris Routh in contempt on Wednesday … for doing his job. The Clarion-Ledger reports:
Weill was hearing arguments from the state to revoke the bond given in County Court to a woman her office represented. The woman was in court with her 3-month-old baby and both began to cry. Routh requested a finding on why bail for the accused was being denied and Weill immediately said he wanted order in court, according to an affidavit filed in state Supreme Court. The affidavit said Weill took a 10 minute break and then held Routh in contempt.
Attorney Merrida "Buddy" Coxwell, representing Routh, filed an emergency appeal with the state high court. A three-judge panel of the court granted the petition in part filed on behalf of Routh. It said Routh should be immediately released from custody after posting a $500 bond while he appeals his contempt citation to the state high court.
"The actions of Judge Weill on yesterday in effect criminalized the very job we are sworn to do," stated Hinds County Public Defender Michele Purvis Harris. "Chris Routh was jailed for doing nothing more than representing his client."
Once again, the judiciary demonstrates a concerning bias toward the state. The idea that a public defender would be held in contempt—without bond!—for requesting a finding on bail for their client is outrageous. It not only stifles the ability of the public defender to do their job, it destroys any possibility of a fair trial. And lest you think Judge Weill was simply having a bad day, this isn’t the first time he’s been especially hard on public defenders.
From WJTV 12:
“We have had over nine attorneys to serve in Judge Weill’s courtroom. And every one of those attorneys has at some point been threatened with the contempt that has never occurred in any of the other courtrooms,” claims Harris. In December, Harris herself was escorted out of Weill’s courtroom. At that time, the Supreme Court also sided with the public defenders.
“We will continue to do our jobs, and that is what is required of us and that’s what we’ll do,” says Harris. “We will not be intimidated. We will not be bullied.”
