Meh. I don't have too much of a problem with it. First, as she points out, it's not the first time he's acted out in her courtroom. Which implies that she warned him.

Second, it is wildly inappropriate, regardless of the venue, to slap someone on backside. Made worse by the fact that it's in courtroom, and worse still by the fact that it was a woman who was not his S.O.

Yes, there are other ways she could have handled this. She could have slapped him with a contempt citation, for instance, because his conduct was certainly showing contempt for the court.

And yes, judges reserve the right to be harsher than normal if the accused demonstrates that they are not taking the proceedings seriously. If you find yourself in a courtroom, show the nice judge that the punishment you're getting is sufficient to instill remorse. If you're going to treat a light sentence in a celebratory manner, demonstrated by slapping your lawyer on the backside, then yes, the judge is going to realize that your punishment is obviously insufficient and thereby increase it.

You don't like it? Then don't act up in court. You're there for a reason, and it's not to make an uncouth idiot of yourself. R Reserve the boorish acts for the singles' bars, and only with women who demonstrate that they appreciate such conduct.

As a side note, and as one who follows the birther movement, I have noticed that birthers, with their trademark arrogance, tend to make things worse for themselves by not respecting the dignity of the court.

Walter Fitzpatrick, for instance, attempted to perform a citizen's arrest on a grand jury foreman, Gary Pettway. (Pettway, had been serving as grand jury foreman for 27 years, while the state Constitution of Tennessee says that grand jury foremen serve a two year term. Concluding that all grand jury proceedings where illegitimate for the past 25 years, Fitzpatrick decided to arrest the foreman, and chose to attempt this while the grand jury was in session. Where Fitzpatrick screwed up is that an appellate court in Tennessee had also ruled that grandjury foremen can be reappointed at the end of their terms; the position does not come with term limits. Fitzpatrick had his own ax to grind with Pettway because the grand jury had refused to instigate an investigation of the President's eligibility.)

While before the judge to be sentenced for one of his charges, Fitzpatrick delivered a prepared statement, claiming that the court had neither jurisdiction over him or a lawful case against him, and walked out. The judge advised him otherwise, and, after having the deputies forcibly return Fitz to the courtroom, gave him the maximum of six months, instead of the intended community service with probation.

Birther attorney Orly Taitz became a bit of a problem for judge Clay D. Land. Forever frustrated by the fact that the only "court" that can try a sitting president is the Senate (and only upon indictment by the House of Representatives), she attempted to instigate frivolous lawsuits on behalf of military personnel, ostensibly to prevent their deployments on the grounds that the President was not eligible for the office he holds.

The problem was, rather than furnish proof, which is the burden of the moving party (her), she attempted to shift blame, calling upon the court itself to prove that Obama is eligible (under the wrongheaded notion that the President's ineligibility renders the protection of the Geneva Conventions inaccurate).

After Orly's first failed case, Judge Land warned her that sanctions would follow if she continued to file frivolous lawsuits. Orly, absolutely contemptuous of the idea that any judge had authority over her, ignored the warning and launched another one.

After enduring Orly's histrionics and relentless complaining about how the court was "attacking" her, Judge Land adjourned the court and unsurprisingly, in his ruling he dismissed the case.

He then ordered Orly to show cause why she should not be sanctioned to the tune of ten thousand dollars.

Orly (who is a textbook example of narcissistic personality disorder) replied to the order with such breathtaking disrespect, that Judge Land doubled the sanctions to twenty thousand. Orly simply scoffed, announcing that she had no intention of paying the sanctions. Orly attempted to appeal, even to Supreme Court justices Roberts and Thomas, who refused to even consider it.

Judge Land ordered liens taken on her property should she fail to pay the sanctions. Orly finally wised up (somewhat) and paid the fine.

A judge on the bench is not representing himself. He is there as a representative of the law. Maintain an appropriate level of dignity for the fifteen minutes it will take you to get through your hearing.

If the trial is longer, then continue maintaining your composure, over the days, weeks or months necessary. If you don't, then the judge will decide that you're taking the proceedings lightly and make sure the punishment is something you will take seriously.

So Chad can go cry me a river. If he can't act like an adult for fifteen minutes, then perhaps an increased sentence will help.

His attorney was a man and I don't really see a problem with what he did. If the attorney had a problem with getting his butt smacked he should address it with his client, not have the judge butt in and get all pissy about it. I think she overreacted.

And what does smacking an attorney on the butt have to do with birthers?

Yes, she overreacted. Much like too many in the legal profession, she needs to get over her own damn self. Lawyers and judges seem to think they are our lords and masters, purposefully making the law as dense and user-unfriendly as possible to make sure that us'n ord'nary folk can't do anything without their say-so! An impromptu display of happiness? HAPPINESS IN MY COURTROOM!?!?!? Not while I'm presiding!

Gee, why do people hold the legal profession in such contempt? Damned if I can figure it out...

Doesn't matter what gender the attorney was, Bunny Girl. Judges expect a certain modicum of dignity in their courtrooms and when they deliver punishments, they expect the condemned to show that the punishment instills an appropriate sense of remorse. If you're celebrating your punishment, then obviously, the judge hasn't done their job.

And as I said, birthers are notorious for their displays of contempt for judicial authority and they are appropriately punished for it.

And cars that are pirated by cows often end up wrapped around telephone poles. You're all wet, so dry up.

Second, it is wildly inappropriate, regardless of the venue

In other words, Patrick has never watched an American football game.

Gee, football players smacking ass? who knew?

Judges expect a certain modicum of dignity in their courtrooms and when they deliver punishments, they expect the condemned to show that the punishment instills an appropriate sense of remorse. If you're celebrating your punishment, then obviously, the judge hasn't done their job. -- Patrick at June 21, 2013 5:56 AM

The judge actually said to Johnson "This is a good deal. You should thank your lawyer for it." That is when Johnson looked over at his lawyer and said "Thanks" and smacked him on the butt, just like he would have after a good play on the field.

I'm fully aware that football players engage in this weirdness. Doesn't mean that it's appropriate for a courtroom.

The idea that because something is done on a football field means that it's necessarily appropriate for a courtroom (or anywhere else, for that matter)...is a lapse in logic that makes me fairly want to erupt in a stream of contemptuous remarks.

A husband and wife might have sex in their bedrooms, therefore the judge should have no problem should they decide to have it in his courtroom. It's too ridiculous for words. The idea that something is done in one place means it's appropriate for another place is...you fill in the blank with an adjective that describes something so preposterous that it deserves all the scorn and ridicule I can muster and more besides.

Or would you prefer something that's typically done in public? Like dancing, perhaps? It's perfectly fine in the clubs, but you cannot cut a rug in a courtroom.

He got the yellow flag for excessive celebration. Get over it.

The judge overreacted. But this is also just the latest in a looooooooong list of utterly stupid and pointless things that Chad Johnson has done.

Not acceptable behavior for a courtroom, but then, I think an extra weekend of community service would have been more appropriate.

Clearly an overreaction, in the extreme.

Not feeling sorry for him. I agree with Patrick. Hold the butt-slapping for afterward.

In football, you can be penalized for "excessive celebration." Consider this his penalty.

I'm not feeling sorry for him either. And I wouldn't be surprised if this goes back to his actual crime, which including head-butting his girlfriend, (there's a nice cleaned-up picture of the split in her forehead if you feel like looking it up) and his general ass-hole Icangetawaywithanything attitude.

And maybe he should learn the difference between the football field and the courtroom. A little dignified behavior might help him next time he's arrested.

The judge probably over-reacted, but I agree with Patrick. Showing a modicum of dignity and respect in a court of law is not too much to ask.

Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson was not shooting a Gatorade commercial or hanging with the gang from ESPN.

He was in court because he had violated his probation from his earlier conviction for head-butting his then-wife in an argument.

By violating the probation, he had already showed he wasn't taking his sentence seriously. So what does he do? He goofs around in the courtroom. He shows the judge he still isn't taking this seriously.

Probation means "behave yourself or we'll throw your ass in jail to complete your sentence there." He failed to behave himself ... twice.

I found the picture that Pricklypear had mentioned concerning his then-wife. I didn't realize he had done this to his wife, and that is only nasty cut on her forehead. In Florida, a battery that results in permanent injury, even scarring, is considered a felony. This looks like a case of felony battery.

As for the attitude that I'mafootballplayerthereforeIcangetawaywithanything, I blame O.J. Simpson. Although the law has caught up to him in other ways, and he was found liable for the deaths of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman, he still did get away with a double murder.

Regarding Amy's suggestion that this is judicial misconduct, I would think that that's a "probably not." The judge can punish him within any parameters for the crime that he committed. If he was facing a year of hard time for his crimes, and the judge starts to tender a lenient sentence but then is put off by the conduct of the defendant, then she can still give the full year.

If the judge is sentencing him in excess of the maximum penalty, they yes, it might be misconduct.

As illustrated in the example of Walter Fitzpatrick I gave above, the judge had gone into the courtroom thinking that he was going to give simply probation and some community service. But Fitz arrogantly informed the court that it had no right to punish him for anything and walked out. The judge gave him six months maximum.

If you're going to make an ass of yourself in court, you can expect less leniency, and that's the judge's prerogative.

One memorable case that I saw live and I thought was hilarious. In docket, answering pleas, a judge was hearing a case of domestic abuse. The defendant, a male, politely asked if the judge would allow his case to be heard by another judge.

Big mistake. This judge was only hearing pleas and setting bonds; she would not have heard his case anyway. But since he walked into it, the judge said, "Can I ask why you wouldn't want this court to hear your case?"

The defendant, oblivious to the stupidity he was committing, calmly stated that he would prefer his case heard "by a man judge."

The judge giggled as she doubled his bond.

The judge giggled as she doubled his bond. -- Patrick at June 21, 2013 10:57 AM

Patrick,

Have you watched the actual video?

Is it worse than Penelope Soto?

Patrick,

You there?