Judge Resigns For Being A Petty Despot, Basically

The ABA Journal has a hell of a headline:

Judge resigns after he is accused of using contempt powers to jail more than 200 people

Okay, that sounds excessive, but, in the fullness of time, over the course of a long career…

A petition for removal alleged that [Judge Curtis DeLapp] has ordered people jailed in more than 200 direct contempt citations since 2016

Da Fuq? How are you going to jail 200 freaking people for contempt in just two years? Was his courtroom just an endless procession of Juggalos and Wu-Tang members?

The petition also alleged that DeLapp altered documents to justify the six-month jail term he gave to a woman for talking in his courtroom…
In another case, DeLapp was accused of jailing a woman for four days after she apparently left sunflower seeds on the courtroom floor and bench. He then allegedly required her to return to court 20 more times over the next 2½ years.

Okay, this man needs to be stopped. In the resignation, Judge DeLapp agrees to never again seek judicial office, but that’s not nearly enough for me. He needs to never again be in a position of authority over others.

A man with that kind of a judgmental streak should be… writing a blog, not issuing contempt orders.

Judge resigns after he is accused of using contempt powers to jail more than 200 people [ABA Journal]

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Elie Mystal is the Executive Editor of Above the Law and the Legal Editor for More Perfect. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at elie@abovethelaw.com. He will resist.

Judge Resigns For Being A Petty Despot, Basically curated from Above the Law