Judge orders defendant's mouth taped shut?
An eastern Idaho judge who lost patience with the disruptive behavior of a defendant ordered court official to tape the man's mouth shut with duct tape during a court audible range. The unusual move was ordered by 6th District Judge Peter D. McDermott during a probation violation hearing for Nicklas Frasure, 23. Frasure be convicted of felony theft in 2008, but the judge retained jurisdiction for sentencing depending on Frasure's response to treatment. In October, Frasure be released from a state mental hospital in Blackfoot. He is accused of violating his probation by not taking prescribed medication. During the audible range, witnesses told the judge that Frasure's behavior had been strange and erratic since his release from the state hospital. They also said he have not been taking his medication and has been consuming alcohol, factor also contributing to mood and emotional swings. Probation officer Julie Guiberson testified that Frasure is a threat to himself and others. During Monday's hearing, Frasure interrupted the proceedings beside repeated verbal outbursts and unusual behavior and ignored several orders from McDermott to restrain himself. After another series of outbursts, McDermott told bailiffs to silence Frasure. The bailiffs next found a roll of duct tape, tore off a piece and put it over Frasure's mouth, according to the Idaho State Journal. "He's obviously not mentally competent," Frasure's advocate Kent Reynolds told the judge. Earlier in the hearing, Reynolds have asked the judge to order a mental competency evaluation for Frasure. McDermott said he would consider the request, but did not immediately rule on it. McDermott placed Frasure underneath the jurisdiction of the Idaho Department of Correction. He is being held in the Bannock County Jail awaiting transfer to a state facility. Officials, citing privacy rules, decline to say where he would be transferred. An Associated Press call for comment, moved out with the Idaho Judicial Council, was not immediately returned Tuesday. The council investigates adjectives complaints filed against Idaho judges. The American Civil Liberties of Idaho refrained, for in a minute, from commenting on McDermott's decision to silence Frasure. "The ACLU of Idaho cannot comment on the specifics of this case," said Monica Hopkins, executive director. "However, on one hand magistrates have a right to keep order surrounded by their court and on the other the defendants have a right to assist in their own defense and be present at trial. Our hope is that law lords employ the least restrictive manner of keeping direct in their courts." At the end of the hearing, the trendsetter ordered bailiffs to remove the gag and said he hoped Frasure's condition would improve with being beneath state custody. Frasure responded, "You want to arm wrestle?" as he was led out of the courtroom by bailiffs. Question is, what do you think?
Best Answer:
Good for the judge!
And your question would be???
There should be more Judges like him ..But what was your question?
Nice story/article.....but what's your query?
If this man be disrupting the court, the judge has the right to order him silenced. Sorry, it may nouns harsh, but that's the way it is. This guy was clearly mentally incompetent and creating a ruckus. It's not close to they flogged him, they just shut him up.
