Comtempt of court for wearing shorts?

[Nyoibo]

On second thought, now that I saw the video for a second time, this may have been a special case. Sounds like the shorts thing was the last straw.

I still don't think wearing shorts is a jail worthy offense, but some of the things she was innitially charged with may have already warrented a little jail time anyway. (I also think judges are power tripping assholes, but that's a topic for another thread).

I think here is the problem, you're hung up on the shorts aspect, it has nothing to do with the shorts, it has to do with someone ignoring an order by a judge.

[HYHYBT]

Wearing shorts, in and of itself, isn't a big deal. That's why she wasn't jailed the first time.

Deliberately violating the judge's instructions *is* a big deal, even if it happens to be over a matter of clothing.

[MadMike]

On second thought, now that I saw the video for a second time, this may have been a special case. Sounds like the shorts thing was the last straw.

That was my take on it as well. If he had thrown her in jail the first time, I'd agree that he had gone too far. Some people who have never been to court before may not know what is and isn't acceptable. She was warned, and continued to do it anyway.

(I also think judges are power tripping assholes, but that's a topic for another thread).

Normally I'd agree with you. I don't have a lot of love for people who are supposed to enforce the law, because a lot of them do seem to be on a power-trip. But in this case, she chose to keep pushing the envelope, and got smacked down for it.

[Andara Bledin]

As much as an idiot this woman seems like, I don't know how anyone can say jail time for how you dress is necessary.

She wasn't jailed for what she was wearing. She was jailed for ignoring an order of the court. For the third time.

She was given instructions prior to arriving at court about how to dress. I know that the paperwork I got just to be a juror said explicitly that shorts were not allowed, as were short skirts. If you're the defendant, you'd better do yourself a favor and actually obey the rules of the courtroom.

And for those saying that there shouldn't be rules about shorts in court; it's not a day at the park, or a stroll through the mall. It's about showing respect for the proceedings at hand. You don't have to get up even business casual, but it's expected that you not dress like a slob or wear clothing that is otherwise not appropriate for the courtroom.

It's worth noting that part of the reason for everybody dressing to a minimum standard is to avoid prejudice. Although, most of the people who would refuse to dress appropriately (much like this woman) would likely have trouble wrapping their heads around that concept.

^-.-^

[Ginger Tea]

You know that "If you prick me do I not bleed" speach, forget the rest or who spoke it (me thinks its based of Shakespear) When I read this thread last night just before going to bed, I thought of a similar thing.
Top Man CEO (or former?) once said that only defendants buy suits from his establishments for their day in court, not job seekers for interviews or people who work in an office needing a suit. Nope his business survived on the need for a suit for a day in court.

And if you dress a tramp in Armarni, he's still a tramp (yes there is a whole sliding scale of what is a tramp/homeless person and why s/he is there in the first place) sleeping rough in a $500 doesn't suddenly make you a better person in other peoples eyes.
I had a 4 day stint at a nightclub that used to have the nickname 'filth' a corporate rebranding and a more suit leaning dress code was in place, yet I watched someone wearing a suit lean forward and do the longest groz I had seen in a while (seeing as I last really encountered that kind of spitting in school) slap bang in the middle of the VIP room.

So if I were to end up in court, I would be jeans and tshirt (least offencive) myself (witness or defendant) not a suit bought just for the trail, hell if I'm already paying for a lawyer would I have the extra cash for a suit just cos they want people to look smart?
And if I were up against the judge for "contempt of court" for not wearing a suit, well your honour, you want us to swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, yet you want me to lie in my appearance, I do not wear suit's, I occasionally wear black trousers and a black not quite denim jacket when I go out, only cos some times I go somewhere that has an evening dress code (hell I got turned away once cos my shoes were muddy cos I had cut across Parkers Piece after some mildly heavy rain).

Oh Ginger, but now you are saying you CAN and will wear smart clothes and "dress to impress." yeah a tramp in a suit, this was before my hair cut so a suit effect attire with matted ginger hair, scraggly beard that never grows on the sides and hardly any teeth.

£3 tesco jeans a belt shoes socks (underwear optional) and a Tshirt with a witty or offencive slogan covered by a hoodie due to the wearther and I'm good to go every day, this is how the world sees me and how I want the world to see me, you want me to wear a suit in court, well lawyer boy, I hope you wore underpants cos your stripping for me.

[draco664]

Contempt of Court is there to allow judges to keep some semblance of order and respect in the courtroom. That is why it is there.

In theory. But the absolute power to put someone in jail on one person's say-so is abused too. Consider H. Beatty Chadwick, a lawyer who was found in contempt of court when he claimed he could not pay the 2.5 million dollars the judge ordered he give his ex wife in their divorce.

He was found in contempt when he claimed he'd lost the money in bad business investments and sent to jail in 1995. Finally released in 2009. 14 years...

Longer than a lot of murder sentences - and not charged with a crime. Hell, if he'd stolen 2.5 million, he'd have been out in less than half the time.

And he was only released because a different judge agreed that continued confinement would not convince him to pay the money, therefore the punishment was no longer coercive (the stated aim of 'contempt of court' jailings), but punitive.

[gremcint]

Rule number 1 listen to the judge, it's that simple.

Don't do x or you'll get y
She did x and she got y

unless she's claiming the shorts are a protest she got what she deserved.

[AdminAssistant]

You know that "If you prick me do I not bleed" speach, forget the rest or who spoke it (me thinks its based of Shakespear)

The Merchant of Venice

[Seifer]

So if I were to end up in court, I would be jeans and tshirt (least offencive) myself (witness or defendant) not a suit bought just for the trail, hell if I'm already paying for a lawyer would I have the extra cash for a suit just cos they want people to look smart?

And if I were up against the judge for "contempt of court" for not wearing a suit, well your honour, you want us to swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, yet you want me to lie in my appearance, I do not wear suit's, I occasionally wear black trousers and a black not quite denim jacket when I go out, only cos some times I go somewhere that has an evening dress code (hell I got turned away once cos my shoes were muddy cos I had cut across Parkers Piece after some mildly heavy rain).

....

£3 tesco jeans a belt shoes socks (underwear optional) and a Tshirt with a witty or offencive slogan covered by a hoodie due to the wearther and I'm good to go every day, this is how the world sees me and how I want the world to see me, you want me to wear a suit in court, well lawyer boy, I hope you wore underpants cos your stripping for me.

The judge didn't order her to wear a suit, she ordered the defendant not to show up in hot pants. She chose to do so anyway, and because of her contempt for the court, she was sent to jail for 3 days.

It's court, it's not a trip to the mall. Would you wear your normal clothes to a job interview? Fuck no, you try and look your absolute best. If that absolute best is nice jeans and a dressy top, then so be it. If that absolute best is hot pants and a tramp shirt, then there's going to be a problem.

[Ginger Tea]

All court houses Ive seen have been on TV and everyone plays dress up cos hey it's fiction and we in the UK have those wigs as part of tradition (no idea if those wigs are used in real courts mind) so it's always bringing home the stereotype that to get on the jury's and juges side you look like a bank manager as a front (even if said bank manager is a skin head with a swastika tattoo on his forehead and a KKK one on the base of the skull), so even if hotpants were a bit extreme, my only encounters of courts involve everyone HAVING to dress for an interview.

Guilty or not I don't feel like I should be forced to dress up, if jeans and a plain non offencive tshirt are not an option, give me the orange jumpsuit instead.

[Andara Bledin]

Guilty or not I don't feel like I should be forced to dress up, if jeans and a plain non offencive tshirt are not an option, give me the orange jumpsuit instead.

Whether you want to play by the rules of society or not, you will end up playing by society's rules.

Just as nudist's dress when going out in public because it's the law, and it's respectful to non-nudist's to do so, one dresses up from "club wear" or "lounge wear" when going to court as both an adherence to the rules of the venue and as a measure of respect for the others involved in the proceedings.

If you're too self-centered to compromise and not dress like a slacker, don't be surprised if the other side refuses to compromise on your behalf, either.

^-.-^

[Ginger Tea]

Would they do this to someone on the witness stand (not the hot pant's extreme) jeans and plain black Tshirt?

If someone is too bent out of shape about what I am wearing to bother to find out what I saw, then fuck, let the mass murderer go I ain't testifying.

[crashhelmet]

Would they do this to someone on the witness stand (not the hot pant's extreme) jeans and plain black Tshirt?

If someone is too bent out of shape about what I am wearing to bother to find out what I saw, then fuck, let the mass murderer go I ain't testifying.

I don't know if they've applied it to the witnesses, but a large part of the reason a defendant is supposed to wear something presentable is to prevent personal opinion from affecting the outcome, especially in jury trials.

A jury is not supposed to see the defendant in their jailhouse jumpsuit and they're often loaned a suit, in the event they don't have one, to keep the jury from automatically thinking "convict"

The attire of a witness could possibly prejudice a jury member when it comes to believing their testimony.

"He looks like a thug. I bet he's lieing!" He looks like an upstanding member of society. I be he's telling the truth."

[TheHuckster]

Would they do this to someone on the witness stand (not the hot pant's extreme) jeans and plain black Tshirt?

If someone is too bent out of shape about what I am wearing to bother to find out what I saw, then fuck, let the mass murderer go I ain't testifying.

Part of the judge's job is to ensure there is as little opportunity for bias as possible, because while the judge is trained to be as unbiased as possible, the jury are laypeople who can be swayed by irrelevant facts.

If a witness is called to the stand and testifies to something, the jury would have a hard time getting past the fact that this witness chose to come into court inappropriately dressed, and there is a chance that this may sway their decision later on, even if it shouldn't.

If everyone comes in dressed appropriately, then there's less of a chance that someone's wardrobe would lessen a witness, defendant, or plaintiff's credibility. Therefore, it's important to dress appropriately. If, later on, it was discovered that a juror judged anyone during the trial based on what they were wearing, a mistrial could be invoked.

[siead_lietrathua]

i was always taught that there are a few things in life you HAVE to dress up for to at least a business-casual level: weddings, funerals, job interviews, and court. and all for the bottom line of respect.
if you choose to go to court in grubbies, be it out of indifference or defiance, don't be surprised if the disrespect you show for the situation at hand is tossed back in your face.