Disqualification Motion Claims Judge Is Too Tough on Drunken Drivers

Corrected: A Michigan judge should be disqualified from hearing drunken driving cases because of her tough DUI sentences, according to a motion filed this week.

The motion says Judge Kimberly Small violates the constitutional rights of drunken drivers by sentencing nearly all first-time offenders to jail, the Detroit Free Press reports. The motion was filed by Bloomfield Hills lawyer Robert Larin and Wayne State University law professor Kenneth Mogill.

The motion argues Small is legislating from the bench by creating mandatory jail time for first offenders. Larin tells the Detroit News that Smith has "crossed the line" and has been "abusing her judicial discretion.”

Updated on Aug. 15 to correct one reference to Judge Kimberly Small's name.