Photo: Monika Skolimowska/dpa (Photo by Monika Skolimowska/picture alliance via Getty Images)
A Detroit judge has reportedly been temporarily removed from handling cases after he handcuffed a young girl and made her wear a jail uniform during a recent field trip. Additionally, the teen’s mother has also spoken out.
As TSR previously reported, a legal system field trip ended with a 15-year-old girl in handcuffs and a jail uniform.
The incident occurred when Judge Kenneth King insisted on putting the teen in a jail uniform and having her sit in lockup after she dozed off in his courtroom.
However, Judge King claims that her “attitude,” not just her sleeping, made him want her to have the real experience.
“I think maybe she needs to go to the juvenile detention facility,” Judge King said. “Why are you being disrespectful to this court? You sleep in bed at your home, not at court.”
As a result, the chief judge of the 36th District Court in Detroit has temporarily suspended Judge Kenneth King.
According to WXYZ, Chief Judge William McConico announced an internal investigation and stated that Judge King will undergo training to address the issues that contributed to his actions.
“We hope that these steps will help to reassure the public of the 36th District Court’s dedication to serving our community with integrity and fairness. The 36th District Court, known as ‘the people’s court,’ remains deeply committed to providing access to justice in an environment free from intimidation or disrespect. The actions of Judge King on August 13th do not reflect this commitment,” McConico said in a statement.
The Detroit News reports that Judge King faced criticism after a live stream showed him reprimanding a 15-year-old for falling asleep in his courtroom.
The young girl attended his courtroom as part of a trip organized by the Greening of Detroit.
In a conversation with 7 News Detroit, Judge Kenneth King explained that the teen’s response to his warning, not her falling asleep, is what upset him.
Before the trial began, Judge King noticed the girl falling asleep and warned her he would “put her in the back” if she nodded off again. The Detroit judge then claims the teen gave him an “attitude.”
“It wasn’t so much, in fact, that she had fallen asleep because I have attorneys that fall asleep sometimes, so that’s not too big of a deal. It was her whole attitude and her whole disposition that disturbed me,” the Detroit judge said. “I wanted to get through to her, show how serious this is and how you are to conduct yourself inside of a courtroom.”
The viral incident between Judge King and the teenage girl has also prompted her mother to speak out.
On Wednesday, August 14, WXYZ spoke with Latoreya Hill, the girl’s mother, about Judge King’s disciplinary actions.
“Would you want someone to treat your child like that? Would you even treat your child like that,” Latoreya said.
The media outlet revealed that the young girl’s name is Eva Goodman. Her mother, a single mom of two, enrolled Eva in a summer program with the Greening Detroit nonprofit to keep her occupied.
Latoreya Hill tearfully told WXYZ that her daughter fell asleep because their family lacks permanent residence and is struggling to make ends meet.
“To belittle her in front of the whole world and her friends, to make her feel even more worse about our situation. The fact that he was talking about ‘you go home and get in your bed,’ how do you know my baby got a home? how do you know my baby got a bed her own bed she could sleep in, she don’t have that right now, so she was tired,” Hill said through tears.
Despite the reactions to Judge King, he stood by his decision to discipline Eva Goodman after she fell asleep. He claimed that his intention was to give her his own version of “scared straight.”
“Do I have any reservations? Do I think I was heavy-handed in what I did? No, I don’t, because I’ll do whatever needs to be done to reach these kids and make sure that they don’t end up in front of me. That was my own version of scared straight,” Judge King explained.
