DETROIT– A judge from Detroit who ordered a teenager to put on prison clothes and handcuffs The court’s chief justice said Thursday that he will not sit in the judge’s chair during a field trip to his courtroom to undergo “necessary training.”
Meanwhile, the girl’s mother said Judge Kenneth King was a “big bully.”
“My daughter is hurt. She feels scared,” Latoreya Till told the Detroit Free Press.
She identified her daughter as Eva Goodman. The 15-year-old fell asleep in King’s Court Tuesday during a visit organized by a Detroit nonprofit.
King didn’t like it. But he said it was her attitude that led to the prison garb, handcuffs and stern words.
“I wanted it to look and feel very real for her, even though there’s little chance I’ll put her in jail,” he explained to WXYZ-TV.
King has been removed from his criminal docket and will “undergo the necessary training to address the underlying issues that contributed to this incident,” said William McConico, chief judge for the 36th District Court.
The court “remains strongly committed to providing access to justice in an environment free from intimidation or disrespect. Judge King’s actions on August 13 do not reflect that commitment,” McConico said.
He said the state Court Administrative Office approved the move. King will continue to be paid. Details of the training and how long it would last were not disclosed.
King, who has been a judge since 2006, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Till said her daughter was sleepy because the family had no permanent residence.
“And so, that particular night, we got into it a little late,” she told the Free Press, referring to Monday night. “And usually, when she goes to work, she’s up and planting trees or being active.”
The teenager visited King’s Court as part of a visit organized by The Greening of Detroit, an environmental nonprofit.
“While the judge was trying to teach a lesson in respect, his methods were unacceptable,” said Marissa Ebersole Wood, the group’s president. “The group of students should have simply left the courtroom if he felt they were being disrespectful.”
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