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Judge Olu Stevens
Usually when in court, people tend to be on their best behavior.
Adam Satterly, whose bond on drug charges was revoked on Monday, apparently didn’t get the memo and earned himself an additional 60 days in jail for being in contempt of court which the judge reduced to time served on Tuesday after Satterly apologized.
According to WDRB, Satterly apparently didn’t take it well when Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Olu Stevens revoked his bond and could be heard in video shouting “punk ass n–ger,” as he was being escorted out of the room.
An upset Stevens asked sheriff’s deputies to bring Satterly back into the courtroom shortly after.
“Is there something that you wish to say to me?” Stevens asked Satterly.
“No, no, no, I didn’t mean it like that,” Satterly said, according to the video, adding that he was referring to his brother, and not the judge.
Stevens, however, wasn’t having it.
“Oh, you didn’t mean it like that?” Stevens replied. “You don’t speak those words in here. And that word particularly, you don’t use that word. I’m going to give you 60 days for having used that word. I’m going to hold you in contempt right now for having used it in this courtroom. It’s disrespectful; don’t ever do it again.”
“This is how the new year starts,” Stevens said.
According to the news station, this is not the first time matters of race have played a central role in Stevens’ courtroom. Stevens, who is black, had not been hearing cases after being called out by Kentucky’s chief justice, and in the midst of an ongoing investigation by the Judicial Conduct Comission, over his comments claiming that Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine wanted “all-white” juries.
Stevens was also heavily criticized for comments made to victims of an armed robbery, accusing them of “fostering” the views of their 5-year-old daughter, who they claimed was still scared of black men, after two black men held the family at gunpoint.
“I’m offended by that. I’m deeply offended by that. That they would be victimized by an individual, and then express some kind of fear of all black men,” Stevens said, WDRB reports. “I wonder if the perpetrator had been white, would they be in fear of white men? The answer would probably be ‘no.'”
Monday, while hearing Satterly’s case, was Steven’s first day back on the bench since Kentucky Chief Justice John Minton denied a request to disqualify him from criminal cases. Minton did, however, criticize Steven’s comments against Wine, before referring the request to the Judicial Conduct Commisison for possible discplinary action, the news station notes.
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