Trials & Litigation
Public defender's suit jacket deflects judge's objection to client's T-shirt
A public defender in Vermont handled an arraignment without his suit jacket Wednesday, after putting it on a client, backwards, to cover an offending T-shirt.
Attorney Doug Willey took action after Caledonia Superior Court Judge Mary Miles Teachout told his client, Christopher Bryant, 28, that his arraignment in a domestic violence case would not proceed until he changed the shirt, and then left the bench, reports the Associated Press. Its article relies on information from the Caledonian Record.
The T-shirt said “I bust mine to kick yours.”
Bryant, wearing his lawyer’s suit jacket, then pleaded not guilty to charges including unlawful restraint and domestic assault. They relate to an incident involving his girlfriend.
