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.
Posted by DaveH at October 26, 2004 8:22 PM