Chad Johnson, aka Ochocinco, a wanted man

[San Jose Bills Fan]

I have a slightly different take on the court scene (at least from what I saw from the clip). He wasn't messing around or acting inappropriately in court. The judge made the comment that he should be very appreciative that his attorney worked out a deal that was favorable to him. That is when he tapped his attorney. He wasn't trying to show up the judge or the court. He responded to the judge's comments that his attorney did a good job for him. He was not smiling or exhibiting any behavior that was inappropriate. The judge got very upset with the laughing in the court. She should have admonished the people in the court, not tear up the plea deal and send him to jail.

 

Before I saw the clip I and heard the initial reporting of the court scene I assumed that Johnson behaved inappropriately and got himself remanded to jail, an indignity that he richly deserved. But when I watched the clip and saw his demeanor before the judge reacted I didn't see him do anything wrong.

 

As I previously stated just because you are a jerk that doesn't mean that you shouldn't be treated fairly in a court of law. In my opinion the judge used poor judgement and acted in a very unprofessional manner.

 

Thank you John.

 

This was exactly my impression.

 

There is no way this was a little joke or that Johnson was making light of the situation.

 

His slap on the butt was an earnest and sincere way of acceding to the judge's statement that he should appreciate his attorney and the judge overreacted because the bailiff and others in the courtroom thought the butt slap was amusing.

[NoSaint]

 

 

Thank you John.

 

This was exactly my impression.

 

There is no way this was a little joke or that Johnson was making light of the situation.

 

His slap on the butt was an earnest and sincere way of acceding to the judge's statement that he should appreciate his attorney and the judge overreacted because the bailiff and others in the courtroom thought the butt slap was amusing.

 

I'm on the fence there. It certainly wasnt a solemn and serious moment but I don't think it was him trying to make a mockery of the court either. He's used to celebrating his accomplishments in an animated way and it likely spilled through here.

 

Regardless it's, in my opinion, an outrage that the judge would swing so wildly in ruling based on this misstep. It screams "I'm important, respect my authority" instead of "carefully and thoughtfully weighing the situation to reach a fair and just outcome." I expect more out of the court. They have the power to drastically change lives and I don't think that she demonstrated good judgement in exercising the powers she was trusted with.

 

This coming from someone that was beat up last year for not supporting chads antics, and thinking he's been a schmuck on and off the field even before the headbutt

[ExiledInIllinois]

Honestly, maybe she reached by being offended. His clueless reaction turned the court into a laugh track. BUT who in the heck reacts like this in court? Judge tells him to be thankful of his attorney and he congratulates him with a slap on the ass? Are you kidding me? This isn't an ESPN commercial. Next time go around work and do that to people who do a good job, see what kinda reaction you get. I've heard of back slappers, but not ass slappers (other than on a football field).

 

Why should this tool be given the benefit of doubt? Almost had to be surreal witnessing what happened.

[Nick the Greek]

Chad Johnson.. Future H.O.F.

 

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d8025b399/article/chad-johnsons-next-stop-dawg-pound

[JohnC]

Thank you John.

 

This was exactly my impression.

 

There is no way this was a little joke or that Johnson was making light of the situation.

 

His slap on the butt was an earnest and sincere way of acceding to the judge's statement that he should appreciate his attorney and the judge overreacted because the bailiff and others in the courtroom thought the butt slap was amusing.

 

The bailiff, even more so than the crowd, should have been admonished by the judge. The bailiff is an officer of the court. He is there to provide security and make sure the environment is suitable for conducting the business of the court. In my judgment he more than any one else signaled to those in attendance that Johnson's reaction was funny. From what I witnessed on the clipp his behavior was very unprofessional and set the tone for the reaction in court.

 

If the judge would have sentenced Johnson to jail for his violations in his case I would not be critical. But changing her plea deal for what she considered to be inappropriate behavior on CJ's part was in my view poor judgment and to some respect an abuse of her authority.

[Mr. WEO]

then he shouldve been serving the time regardless of playful joke.

 

this should not be the gap between walking out or 30 days

 

 

I have little regard for Chad Johnson as a person. He is an immature and irresponsible person whose life is in shambles because of his own recklessness. But the response he received from the judge for the tap on his attorney was simply outrageous. The judge was very irritated by the laughter of the crowd after he tapped his attorney. He didn't do it to show disrespect to the judge or the court. He didn't tap his attorney to get a response from the people in the court. The judge told Ocho that he should be very thankful that his attorney worked out a favorable plea deal that kept him out of jail. That is when he tapped his attorney.

 

From what I observed from the clip it was the judge who acted in a very injudicious way. She exercised poor judgment and abused her authority by sending him to jail for behavior that was harmless. When I first heard the story about the judge rejecting the plea agreement I thought that it was for improper behavior in court. From what I saw from the that clip he didn't exhibit any inapproprite behavior or disrespect toward the court. This is a case where the judge should be sanctioned by the legal reviewing authorities for intemperate and injudicious behavior.

 

Even jackasses should be treated fairly in court. He wasn't in this case. It is a travesty.

 

agree to disagree. to impart any even hint of violent nature could be twisted into his actions is totally inappropriate. your acting as if patting him on the back (or in this case butt) is somehow a joking form of a slap - its not. it has no business being even suggested that it could be construed to be. its silly to pretend the two are related. and i think it has nothing to do with the judges reaction. the judge was trying to make a serious point and thought he was making a fool of her by joking around.

 

I'm on the fence there. It certainly wasnt a solemn and serious moment but I don't think it was him trying to make a mockery of the court either. He's used to celebrating his accomplishments in an animated way and it likely spilled through here.

 

Regardless it's, in my opinion, an outrage that the judge would swing so wildly in ruling based on this misstep. It screams "I'm important, respect my authority" instead of "carefully and thoughtfully weighing the situation to reach a fair and just outcome." I expect more out of the court. They have the power to drastically change lives and I don't think that she demonstrated good judgement in exercising the powers she was trusted with.

 

This coming from someone that was beat up last year for not supporting chads antics, and thinking he's been a schmuck on and off the field even before the headbutt

 

 

This bolded is the gist of it. I don't think she thought he was making a fool of her, but that he was making light of his circumstance. In response to your first post above, she (and everyone in the courtroom) knew he was going to avoid jail because he is a celebrity (and she was deferential to his excellent lawyer, as he acknowledged). When he made his little Ocho move, it was seen by here as a "wink, wink"--that he had "gotten off" and to her that signaled that he had no remorse nor did he appreciate the seriousness of his situation. It is within her discretion to remind him of the seriousness of the charge by giving him the penalty he was certainly due for as a violator of parole.

 

The bailiff, even more so than the crowd, should have been admonished by the judge. The bailiff is an officer of the court. He is there to provide security and make sure the environment is suitable for conducting the business of the court. In my judgment he more than any one else signaled to those in attendance that Johnson's reaction was funny. From what I witnessed on the clipp his behavior was very unprofessional and set the tone for the reaction in court.

 

If the judge would have sentenced Johnson to jail for his violations in his case I would not be critical. But changing her plea deal for what she considered to be inappropriate behavior on CJ's part was in my view poor judgment and to some respect an abuse of her authority.

 

The bailiff isn't appearing before the court as a parole violator with his freedom in the hands of the court.

 

Your outrage is displaced. What's wrong with a guy like Chad spending a month in jail for violating his parole? That's the punishment (at least) for the offense.

[NoSaint]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This bolded is the gist of it. I don't think she thought he was making a fool of her, but that he was making light of his circumstance. In response to your first post above, she (and everyone in the courtroom) knew he was going to avoid jail because he is a celebrity

 

Your outrage is displaced. What's wrong with a guy like Chad spending a month in jail for violating his parole? That's the punishment (at least) for the offense.

 

Disclaimer that I cut the quoted post down a lot but..... Doesn't your assertion that he was getting off as a celebrity match that she isn't all that interested in fair and just execution of the law?

 

Either he deserved jail or he didnt and his career or his tap on the butt don't change that.

[JohnC]

 

 

This bolded is the gist of it. I don't think she thought he was making a fool of her, but that he was making light of his circumstance. In response to your first post above, she (and everyone in the courtroom) knew he was going to avoid jail because he is a celebrity (and she was deferential to his excellent lawyer, as he acknowledged). When he made his little Ocho move, it was seen by here as a "wink, wink"--that he had "gotten off" and to her that signaled that he had no remorse nor did he appreciate the seriousness of his situation. It is within her discretion to remind him of the seriousness of the charge by giving him the penalty he was certainly due for as a violator of parole.

 

You missed the point. If she made a ruling calling for him to go to jail I would have had no problem with her decision. The problem I have is that she on the spot changed her position on the plea deal because of the butt slap and crowd laughter.She thought he wasn't taking the proceeding seriously. From what I witnessed from the clip I didn't see him acting in a disrespectful manner toward her and the court.

 

 

 

The bailiff isn't appearing before the court as a parole violator with his freedom in the hands of the court.

 

The bailiff is an officer of the court. He has a job to do relating to security and maintaining order. He set the tone of frivolity that signaled to those in the courtroom that their laughing response was acceptable.

 

Your outrage is displaced. What's wrong with a guy like Chad spending a month in jail for violating his parole? That's the punishment (at least) for the offense.

 

The punishment was agreed to prior to the court session. The judge overreacted to the court crowd's laughter. She should have admonished them instead of changing her deal on the spot for behavior that she wrongly perceived he was involved in.

 

I'm not a Chad Johnson fan. Never have been. I find his antics on and off the field to be stupid. But in this case I strongly believe that this jackass was treated unfairly by an overly reactive judge who exercised poor judgment.

[Mr. WEO]

Disclaimer that I cut the quoted post down a lot but..... Doesn't your assertion that he was getting off as a celebrity match that she isn't all that interested in fair and just execution of the law?

 

Either he deserved jail or he didnt and his career or his tap on the butt don't change that.

 

My guess is that she was giving him a break as a nod to his lawyer or the way things are expected to go for celebs or maybe she was pressured by someone to give him a break. When she saw he wasn't taking it seriously, she had enough. There's no other explanation that makes sense.

[San Jose Bills Fan]

My guess is that she was giving him a break as a nod to his lawyer or the way things are expected to go for celebs or maybe she was pressured by someone to give him a break. When she saw he wasn't taking it seriously, she had enough. There's no other explanation that makes sense.

 

Disagree.

 

I'm with those who believe she overreacted to the laughter. Some judges don't have the right temperament and even if they do, they sometimes have bad moments.

 

I think she decided that it was an affront to her authority when it wasn't.

[JohnC]

My guess is that she was giving him a break as a nod to his lawyer or the way things are expected to go for celebs or maybe she was pressured by someone to give him a break. When she saw he wasn't taking it seriously, she had enough. There's no other explanation that makes sense.

 

Who would be pressuring her to give this loser a break? No one. CJ's attorney convinced her that it wasn't in anyone's interest to send him to jail. She agreed to it. She misinterpreted Johnson's slap as disrespect toward her and the court. If you watch the clip without any preconceived notions it was obvious that he wasn't demonstrating any disrespect to her and the court. In my opinion she overreacted and responded excessively to an innocuous act.

[Mr. WEO]

Disagree.

 

I'm with those who believe she overreacted to the laughter. Some judges don't have the right temperament and even if they do, they sometimes have bad moments.

 

I think she decided that it was an affront to her authority when it wasn't.

 

Chad could have just stood there and not drawn the attention (and laughter) that he was seeking at that moment. She obviously saw this and concluded that he wasn't goign to be any more serious about his extended parole than he was about his intial probation. I don't think she suddenly snapped and had a "bad day". I'm sure she disagreed with the deal the DA made (judges don't make the deals) before this appearance and she used her discretion, as a judge, to give the punishement she feels is appropriate--deal or no deal.

 

It's simple, had he not done this little butt slap in court, he would not have to spend a month in jail. And it goes without saying that if he had not violated parole, he wouldn't be in court in the first place--facing up to a year in jail.......

 

Maybe jail will himble this guy. Pissing away his NFL career hasn't.

[San Jose Bills Fan]

Chad could have just stood there and not drawn the attention (and laughter) that he was seeking at that moment.

 

See, I don't think you watched the video.

 

As others have stated, it's hard to draw the conclusion above if you see the video.

[JohnC]

Chad could have just stood there and not drawn the attention (and laughter) that he was seeking at that moment. She obviously saw this and concluded that he wasn't goign to be any more serious about his extended parole than he was about his intial probation. I don't think she suddenly snapped and had a "bad day". I'm sure she disagreed with the deal the DA made (judges don't make the deals) before this appearance and she used her discretion, as a judge, to give the punishement she feels is appropriate--deal or no deal.

 

No deal between the DA and the defense is consumated unless the judge agrees to it. No one else but the judge is the sentencing authority. CJ's attorney convinced the DA and her that no jail time was in the best interest of the court.

[Mr. WEO]

See, I don't think you watched the video.

 

As others have stated, it's hard to draw the conclusion above if you see the video.

 

Of course I watched it. Why do you think he felt compelled to slap his lawyer? Just to let him know he did a great job?? Of course not. He knew what the response by others in the courtroom would be...."oh that ol' Ocho Cinco!--look at that what he just did!".

 

Maybe you are not familiar with Chad's narcissism, or have not seen it before? Sure, it was a "harmless" act, but the judge saw enough to conclude he was joking around (straight "who me?" face not withstanding) and she let him have the sentence she thought he deserved all along.

 

No deal between the DA and the defense is consumated unless the judge agrees to it. No one else but the judge is the sentencing authority. CJ's attorney convinced the DA and her that no jail time was in the best interest of the court.

 

Exactly, but she doesn't make the offer. And obiously, in the end, she went with her better judgement. I'm sure there many such low level cases where judges, for expediency rubber stamp pleas all day every day.

[Bufcomments]

I agree with the people who say Chad should have just said " yes your Honor". Slapping the guy on the butt was totally stupid. What ?? Did he think he scored a touchdown??. He was not on a football field, he was in a court of LAW. You think somebody his age would know better, but this is Chad Johnson we talking about here.

 

Instead of being a free man right now, his stupid ass is sitting in jail for 30 days for showing up the judge.

 

I'm sure the bailiff got a talking to by the judge afterwords. His behavior was not good either. But Chad choose to clown around with the wrong Judge.

 

The kid will never grow up. He still a clown and 30 days in jail will not change Chad. I hope it does but he still about Chad.

 

When I saw the vid last night I could not believe it. I mean how stupid can you be???

[JohnC]

Exactly, but she doesn't make the offer. And obiously, in the end, she went with her better judgement. I'm sure there many such low level cases where judges, for expediency rubber stamp pleas all day every day.

 

In reality it doesn't matter what the offer is on the table between the DA and the defense. The judge doesn't have to agree to a deal if she doesn't believe it is a fair deal. In this case she agreed with a plea deal. We really don't know what the DA's position was. Most likely the DA negotiated a deal with the defense and brought it to the judge. They had to convince the judge that the deal was reasonable and justice was served.

 

The judge changed her position on the spot because of the backside slap and the resulting laughter in the court. As SJBF pointed out if you go back and watch the clip there is no way that he intended to show disrespect to the judge and the court.

 

I'm sure you know very well that I am usually unsympathetic to football knuckleheads. But in this case the knucklehead didn't get a fair shake in this court from this intemperate judge. In my mind she exhibited very poor judgment.

Edited June 11, 2013 by JohnC

[JohnC]

 

 

Exactly, but she doesn't make the offer. And obiously, in the end, she went with her better judgement. I'm sure there many such low level cases where judges, for expediency rubber stamp pleas all day every day.

 

This case was not a typical low level case that wasn't going to draw public attention. This was a high profile case of a well publicized buffoon football player appearing in her very busy lower level court. You better believe that she was very aware that the cameras were running and that this court session was going to be shown on TV. You can also be very certain that she gave a little more thought to this particular plea deal because of the publicity associated with this will-known defendant.

[Bufcomments]

In reality it doesn't matter what the offer is on the table between the DA and the defense. The judge doesn't have to agree to a deal if she doesn't believe it is a fair deal. In this case she agreed with a plea deal. We really don't know what the DA's position was. Most likely the DA negotiated a deal with the defense and brought it to the judge. They had to convince the judge that the deal was reasonable and justice was served.

 

The judge changed her position on the spot because of the backside slap and the resulting laughter in the court. As SJBF pointed out if you go back and watch the clip there is no way that he intended to show disrespect to the judge and the court.

 

I'm sure you know very well that I am usually unsympathetic to football knuckleheads. But in this case the knucklehead didn't get a fair shake in this court from this intemperate judge. In my mind she exhibited very poor judgment.

I usually agree with your posts but not this time.

 

She changed her mind on the spot because it was clear to her that Chad was not taking it seriously. You just don't do anything in COURT. Don't you think she was giving Chad a break by just giving him more probation?

 

She even knew she was giving him a 2nd chance. She didn't have to accept the plea deal. But Chad, being the fool he is, did something that none of us normal people would ever think about doing in Court.

 

He was grandstanding in a courtroom, you cant do that to a judge who has the power to send you to jail, and she did lol

[NoSaint]

 

 

This case was not a typical low level case that wasn't going to draw public attention. This was a high profile case of a well publicized buffoon football player appearing in her very busy lower level court. You better believe that she was very aware that the cameras were running and that this court session was going to be shown on TV. You can also be very certain that she gave a little more thought to this particular plea deal because of the publicity associated with this will-known defendant.

 

and because of those cameras likely was A LOT more sensitive towards the idea of a star showing her up.

 

on an aside, im also pretty surprised he didnt atleast wear a suit, or get a little more formal for the event (say, sleeves for instance). i guess it speaks to what a casual event he and his lawyer expected it to be.... ooops.

Edited June 11, 2013 by NoSaint