US judge puts girl in cuffs, jail clothes for falling asleep during courtroom field trip
- The 16-year-old was ‘traumatised’ after Judge Kenneth King asked other kids in the courtroom if she should be taken to juvenile detention
A teenager on a field trip to see a Detroit court ended up in jail clothes and handcuffs because a judge said he did not like her attitude.
Judge Kenneth King even asked other kids in the courtroom on Tuesday whether the 16-year-old girl should be taken to juvenile detention, WXYZ-TV reported.
King, who works at 36th District Court, defended his actions.
“I wanted this to look and feel very real to her, even though there’s probably no real chance of me putting her in jail. That was my own version of ‘Scared Straight,’” King said, referring to a documentary about teen offenders in New Jersey.
The teen was seeing King’s court as part of a visit organised by The Greening of Detroit, a non-profit environmental group. During the visit, King noticed the girl falling asleep, WXYZ reported.
“You fall asleep in my courtroom one more time, I’m gonna put you in back, understood?” the judge said, according to video of his remarks.
