Judge Finds Himself in Contempt of Court After Own Cellphone Goes Off During Trial
A judge who accidentally violated his own "no cellphone noises in court" policy felt he had no choice but to hold himself in contempt.
During the closing argument portion of a jury trial last Friday, Judge Raymond Voet of the Ionia County 64A District Court in Michigan inadvertently tapped against the screen of his new Windows smartphone, triggering its voice commands.
"I'm guessing I bumped it," he told the Associated Press. "It started talking really loud, saying 'I can't understand you. Say something like Mom.'"
Judge Voet insisted on treating himself the same as he would anyone who would break the cellphone rule in his court — and fined himself $25 for contempt of court.
"If I cannot live by the rules that I enforce," Voet said, "then I have no business enforcing these rules."
