FreeRepublic , LLC
PO BOX 9771
FRESNO, CA 93794
STOP BY AND BUMP THE FUNDRAISER THREAD
Posted on 01/15/2003 10:16:57 AM PST by Dan from Michigan
District court showdown
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wed, Jan 15, 2003 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judge, defendant at stalemate as obscenity ruling heads for trial
Call it the showdown at 53rd District Court.
Eric Wilmoth, the 26-year-old Howell resident who wrote obscenities on the memo line of a check he used to pay a traffic fine, won't admit guilt.
Judge John Pikkarainen, who found Wilmoth in contempt of court for writing the offensive check, won't dismiss the case.
It all means that the case of the obscene check will move on to an evidentiary hearing on Jan. 24 at 1:30 p.m., which could include arguments and testimony from witnesses.
"Much like a trial in a criminal case," said Ron Plunkett, a Brighton defense attorney representing Wilmoth.
The decision to send the case to an evidentiary hearing came after Plunkett met with Pikkarainen in his chambers. It became clear the judge would not dismiss the case and the defendant would not plead guilty or no contest to the charge, even though he has written a letter of apology to the court.
"It is my understanding that the language that I used on that check may have offended you. For this I am deeply sorry, and genuinely remorseful," Wilmoth said in a letter to the 53rd District Court filed on Friday. "I did not intend to trouble any of the court staff with my choice of language."
Wilmoth, 26, wrote and highlighted "Bulls- - - F- - - - - - ticket. Suck on it," on the memo line of a check he used to pay a traffic ticket this fall. He had accidentally backed into another car in Howell while trying to turn onto Grand River Avenue.
He was charged with contempt by Pikkarainen in October for "improper use of language." A show-cause hearing was held in December in which Pikkarainen said a written apology would go a long way toward resolving the matter.
Plunkett is arguing the contempt charge violates his client's First Amendment rights to free speech and has filed a motion to have the case dismissed on those grounds. That motion has not yet been ruled on.
"This case will be all about the First Amendment," Plunkett said.
The parameters of the evidentiary hearing have not been set as far as who will prosecute the case and who will judge it. But the evidentiary hearing will be held in Pikkarainen's courtroom.
If convicted, Wilmoth could face 30 days in jail and a $250 fine. Plunkett said if his client is found guilty he will appeal the case to circuit court and beyond.
Pikkarainen's law clerk, Laura Mitchell, said the judge will not comment on the case because it has not been adjudicated. Wilmoth also declined comment.
In a previous case, another Howell man was sentenced by Pikkarainen to two days of community service for writing "F- - - OFF" in a check's memo line. He also held one other person in contempt recently for a similar incident, the details of which have not yet come to light.
Pikkarainen said previously he views the clerks as an extension of the court and treats anything said in their presence as if it were said to him in his courtroom. He maintains the clerks should not have to put up with such behavior.
By Jon Zemke
DAILY PRESS & ARGUS
"Bulls- - - F- - - - - - ticket. Suck on it"
If I am imagining the right words omitted from above, it seems to me he used them in exactly the proper context.
An old man in a robe doesn't get to decide what words grown adults may say or write. Live with it. He doesn't get to say "You owe us $500 and must go to jail for saying F$%K!". Claiming to have such a power does not qualify as "decent conduct in our society". And this "society" doesn't belong to a certain group of people with like ideas. This man is part of this "society" that you call "our's".
If he wants to act on such a view in his official capacity as an officer of the law, he ought to write his representative about introducing a bill to that effect.
I'm not saying that the comments were not rude, impolite, or offensive. That's for each person to decide for themselves. My problem is when a judge from my county decides to make the law and threaten to toss someone in jail over it,and create a circus with MY tax money.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.