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Jinn · 04-09-2008, 08:26 PM

pan, have you ever personally heard a judge voice his or her personal opinion after rendering an official judgment?

Do you have a problem with a judge doing that, if they don't ask anyone to leave first?

As a perfect example, I had a judge say the following to me:

"In light of your agreement with the district attorney, this court finds that you are guilty of XXXX, and sentences you to 24 hours of community service and a XXXX class. "

"And personally, I think you've gotten off very easy here. You could've been charged with far more serious things, and I think you owe the officers here an apology at the very least. I think you've got a lot of maturing to do, and I hope that you do it quickly because I don't want to see your face in here again."

The second half wasn't his "official" ruling, it was his personal opinion. It was embarrassing, and if he had said it to me in private, I would've preferred it.

I find no problem with what he did, and I would've think that anyone should be offended if he asked them to leave so he could deliver his "personal opinion" to me in private.

It is because of this personal memory that I find it hard to see this story in any other light.

04-09-2008, 08:26 PM	#266 (permalink)
Jinn Lover - Protector - Teacher Location: Seattle, WA	pan, have you ever personally heard a judge voice his or her personal opinion after rendering an official judgment? Do you have a problem with a judge doing that, if they don't ask anyone to leave first? As a perfect example, I had a judge say the following to me: "In light of your agreement with the district attorney, this court finds that you are guilty of XXXX, and sentences you to 24 hours of community service and a XXXX class. " "And personally, I think you've gotten off very easy here. You could've been charged with far more serious things, and I think you owe the officers here an apology at the very least. I think you've got a lot of maturing to do, and I hope that you do it quickly because I don't want to see your face in here again." The second half wasn't his "official" ruling, it was his personal opinion. It was embarrassing, and if he had said it to me in private, I would've preferred it. I find no problem with what he did, and I would've think that anyone should be offended if he asked them to leave so he could deliver his "personal opinion" to me in private. It is because of this personal memory that I find it hard to see this story in any other light. __________________ "I'm typing on a computer of science, which is being sent by science wires to a little science server where you can access it. I'm not typing on a computer of philosophy or religion or whatever other thing you think can be used to understand the universe because they're a poor substitute in the role of understanding the universe which exists independent from ourselves." - Willravel Last edited by Jinn; 04-09-2008 at 08:31 PM..