Great Judge

A Criminal Courts Judge in Texas threw a party for the defendant and then gave them life in prison. CNN/Law Center has the story: bq. A judge threw a party complete with balloons, streamers and a cake to welcome a former fugitive back to her court -- and sentence him to life in prison. bq. "You just made my day when I heard you had finally come home," Criminal Courts Judge Faith Johnson told Billy Wayne Williams, who had been convicted in absentia of aggravated assault after he disappeared a year ago. "We're so excited to see you, we're throwing a party for you." bq. Williams, 53, who has a criminal record dating to the 1980s, was accused of choking his girlfriend until she passed out. He failed to appear for his trial last November and was captured Thursday at a gas station in suburban Arlington. This guy is obviously _not_ Santa Claus and he had jumped bail. The Judge arranged a party for him because it was obvious that he was so very special: bq. Before he was brought into the courtroom on Monday, the judge directed staff members as they placed balloons and streamers around the courtroom. A colorful cake was decorated with his name and one candle to signify the year he spent on the lam. bq. "It seems like everyone wants to have a party, and it's fun for you people, but not for me," Williams told reporters as he was led away in handcuffs. Very cool -- sense of humor and brings the fact home to the prisoner that he was violating the law and that he was not above it.