Calling judge vulgar name doesn’t amount to criminal contempt, state supreme court says
Calling a judge a vulgar name is rude, but it does not amount to criminal contempt, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently found. (Image from Shutterstock)
The criminal contempt conviction of a courtroom spectator who called a judge a vulgar name after she ruled against a motion that his acquaintance filed was recently vacated by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
Basile Outlaw spent 30 days in jail after the 2022 incident involving Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Roxanne E. Covington, Reason reports.
“What did you say?” Covington responded to his remark, according to the article.
“Never mind, I’m leaving,” Outlaw said.
He claims that he later came back to apologize and was taken into custody, Reason reports.
In December 2023, the Pennsylvania Superior Court upheld Outlaw’s conviction. The state supreme court reversed and vacated the conviction in late October, finding that while what Outlaw did was rude, it wasn’t enough for criminal contempt.
The majority opinion cited an earlier finding involving a pro se party in a custody dispute calling the judge a vulgar term.
Here, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court also reversed a criminal contempt conviction for the party. In both cases, the state supreme court found, the outbursts amounted to momentary breaks in the proceedings, not significant disruptions.
Write a letter to the editor, share a story tip or update, or report an error.
