Skip to main content

6 Top Terrible, Drunken, Angry, Arrested Judge Stories

By Casey C. Sullivan, Esq. on July 25, 2016 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

There are plenty of stories out there about lawyers behaving badly -- lawyers who murder, lawyers who are arrested on drug charges, while in court, lawyers who live double lives as prostitutes.

But it's not just attorneys who act out every now and then. There are plenty of judges who can give the worst lawyers a run for their money. Here are just a few, from the FindLaw archives.

1. Arkansas Judge Suspended Over Fistfight in Walmart

Losing your cool and letting your fists fly is never a good idea -- and it's even worse when those fists fly in the middle of an Arkansas Walmart and the man on the receiving end is your ex-wife's boyfriend. But that's just what happened to state judge Sam Pope, who was suspended for 30 days as a result.

2. Drunk Judge, Wrapped in Bedsheet, Arrested in Hotel Hallway

One minute, your sneaking out of your room in the local Radisson, dressed in no more than a poorly fashioned bedsheet toga. The next, you're surrounded by police, getting arrested for harassment, disorderly conduct, and public drunkenness after another judge calls the cops when you won't stop pounding on her door.

3. Miss. Judge Indicted in Racially Charged Assault on Disabled Man

Here's one of the most awful in the annals of Judges Behaving Awfully: a Mississippi judge was indicted last year for beating up a mentally disabled black man at a local flea market.

4. Florida Judge Suspended After Fisticuffs With Public Defender

While there's plenty of fighting judges on this list, most of them keep the violence outside the courthouse. Not Brevard County Judge John C. Murphy, though. After telling a public defender that "You know, if I had a rock I'd throw it at you right now," Judge Murphy decided no rock was needed, and fought with the lawyer right outside his courtroom.

5. Judge Handcuffs Lawyer in Court to 'Teach Her a Lesson'

A Las Vegas judge's "lesson in decorum" took the form of cuffing a lawyer and seating her with inmates after she refused to "be quiet" during a client's sentencing. Apparently, a fine or finding of contempt wasn't good enough.

6. With Midnight Extension, Judge Tells Associates Their Lives Suck

It's bad enough to be stuck in the office until midnight, racing to meet a filing notice, only to desperately request a last minute extension. But it's much worse when your judge uses your request for a 15 minute extension as an opportunity to remind you just how awful your life is.

Related Resources:

Copied to clipboard