Reminding all of the importance of judging Joe Brown not, lest ye be Judge Joe Browned, recently ousted TV Judge Joe Brown had it out with a magistrate in Memphis, Tennessee, leading to Brown being sentenced to five days in jail for contempt of court. The 66-year-old—who once spent many an afternoon exhorting all those embroiled in civil cases, as well as any day-drinkers watching at home, to “Man Up”—was on hand to represent a woman in a child support case, when he was confronted with the decidedly unmanly behavior of Magistrate Judge Harold “Hal” Horne.
After Horne told him his case would not be heard that day, Brown manned up by challenging Horne’s right to preside, questioning whether he’d been approved through the proper channels, even the basic-cable ones. As you can hear in the audio below, Brown only becomes more irate as the first of five charges of contempt of court are levied against him, likely remembering a time when he wielded the authority to say who should shut up, aided by his trusty gavel and commercial break.
Judge Joe Brown — Arrested After Court Meltdown
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“He darn near caused a riot in the courtroom, he had people so inflamed,” said Dan Michael, chief magistrate of the Shelby County Juvenile Court, in one of the most Tennessean quotes you will read today.
It’s worth noting that Brown was himself once a Shelby Country criminal judge, before being lured away by reality TV stardom. Since losing his show last year, over reportedly heated demands for a raise on his $20 million-a-year salary, Brown has manned up by running in the Democratic primary for Shelby County district attorney general. Obviously, it’s too soon to tell what effect this might have on his campaign—although, in his stead, voters may choose to elect Judge Joe Brown’s mugshot, whose frowning, disapproving countenance could function as an effective deterrent to crime.