Criminal law, Society

Texas Prisoner Reportedly Shocked For Failing To Stand While Addressing Court

150927-james-calvert-jsw-_073fc1537d8d2a0b52aeaf9d4af664f2.nbcnews-ux-320-320I have long been a critic of the use of shock belts, particularly in courtrooms. Those concerns were magnified this week when Judge Jack Skeen or his deputies shocked criminal defendant James Calvert for failing to stand while addressing the court. Calvert had a long history of disrupting the court proceeding.

There is no question that Calvert was a handful in representing himself. However, to use these belts for behavior modification or punishment is deeply disturbing. He can be denied the right to represent himself. But shocked?

Calvert reportedly screamed for five minutes and Judge Jack Skeen ordered public defenders who had been monitoring the case to take over representation. He simply stated “I should have done this a lot sooner. I don’t have to take it. You’re out.” Well, I can understand the decision but not the means. He can be denied his right to self-representation if he refuses to comply with the rules. Yet, to hit him with a high voltage for showing disrespect, it raises serious question of judicial temperament, judgment, and proportionality.

Despite the prosecutors agreeing to suppress evidence of a search of Calvert’s mother’s home, Calvert tried to question a detective about the search. Calvert explained that “I just want the jury to know the truth.” Skeen responded with “What you can’t handle is the truth.”

Perhaps. That and high voltage shocks.

90 thoughts on “Texas Prisoner Reportedly Shocked For Failing To Stand While Addressing Court”

  3. Don, I am always wary of links I don’t recognize, and “smirking chimp” is one of those. So, I Google News searched and found similarly obscure left wing coverage. The Guardian, left but @ least somewhat mainstream, covered it so I read their piece. It is a tempest in a teapot. If the MSM, which is on board w/ this conspiracy, hasn’t latched onto it yet, then it isn’t much. Now, they may latch on, but the story is more than 2 weeks old and it’s still only in the wacky media so far. I find the reporting suspect, and the wording w/ “consensus” being the red flag meme, not the Rosetta Stone evangelical Church of Environmentalism members are seeking. But, I hope you find the truth you are apparently seeking. Always remember, a religion w/ Al Gore as its Pope is not righteous.

    Regarding the Catholic Pope, I listened to and read his homilies. I was heartened. If you read my Presbyterian Environmental beliefs, I am on board w/ sensible guardianship of mother earth. The Pope talked about consumerism and the waste derived from it. I rant about peoples love of the temporal and seeking comfort in buying stuff. I lead a simple life. I use little processed food. I just finished canning, roasting and cooking tomatoes, eggplant, garlic, peppers, etc. for the winter. The Pope talked about biodiversity. I am very much down w/ that. I learned when I went back to college the ramifications of becoming dependent on a small number of hybrids. the Irish Potato Famine being an example of what could happen. I drive a small car, I recycle, I use cloth grocery bags, etc. What the Catholic Pope spoke about, I pretty much abide. It had and American Indian flavor to it. I just see how all of these issues have been shoved aside and a Joel Osteen evangelical religion has evolved in the past decade. Al Gore has decreed his Church is going all in on putting Big Oil out of biz. He and the hierarchy of the Church are heavily leveraged in alternative companies and taxpayer dollars are being funneled to them. Too bad about Solyndra. But, there are many more.

  4. 1. The shock belt didn’t make him stand, but fall.
    2. Use of the shock belt won’t affect the jury at all, right?

    He’s clearly the WrongColor and WrongRace for this to be today’s Moment of Outrage.

    This is what happens when you kill the US Constitution.
    Rule of Men, not rule of law.
    So why stand and show respect for it?

    The defendant was out of control, but so was Charles Manson, yet Manson was handled without electrocuting him.

  5. “There is no question that Calvert was a handful in representing himself.”

    Smiling. (Thanks.)

  6. Thanks for the additional information, John.

    IMO, this is yet another example of the trickle-down torture effect.

  7. Some interesting exchanges in the following older article:

    http://www.cbs19.tv/story/26107102/accused-capital-murderer-james-calvert-toys-with-court-im-not-the-defendant

    Excerpt:

    Calvert made a motion to have jail phone calls involving him and made any time after his decision to represent himself made off limits to the prosecution. Judge Skeen asked him to narrow his motion. Calvert was largely unable to do so.

    Bingham presented numerous case law examples that he said firmly established the lack of a right to privacy for jailed defendant. He said he would be amenable to Calvert making specific requests for certain phone calls to be off limits based on specific criteria.

    Calvert told Judge Skeen he thought that was unfair.

    “The thing is, I’m not the defendant,” Calvert said.

    “Actually, you are,” Judge Skeen said.

    Bingham argued that identities of expert witnesses are mutually disclosed and that his office doesn’t listen to phone calls between the jail and such people anyway.

    Judge Skeen ruled that any calls Calvert wanted to have shielded would have to be submitted to the court individually. Calvert objected and was overruled.

    Calvert’s motion for a computer expert quickly produced a discussion of what was on the hard drive inside the computer police seized from Calvert’s home. Bingham indicated that Calvert was storing names of police officers, mirror images of others’ personal cell phones, names and images of local attorneys’ wives.

    Calvert said his former job as a computer expert for law firms justified the contents of the drive. He added his belief that the drive was obtained using a legally indefensible search warrant.

    Calvert made what seemed to be an ultimatum, saying that Bingham’s failure to return certain items would result in Calvert going forward in a “messy” motion to suppress hearing which would seek to essentially invalidate the search warrant and the results thereof. -cbs19

    Very interesting case. There’s always more to many of these situations than meets the eye.

  8. The voltage is at least twice as high as a taser, (which is designed to stop a person). There is no need for them to be worse than a taser, these are torture devices plain & simple.

  9. Lighting up this man for not showing respect is tantamount to assault.

    Aside from the judge’s individual actions here I do not believe it is reasonable for a judge to have access to the device. I presume he is not trained on when and how to properly use the device. LEOs must be trained before they may use such a device and I doubt this judge has. He obviously hasn’t displayed proper discretion in knowing when its use is indicated. There are two scenarios where this belt can be used:

    1. When the defendant is being so combative that he cannot be controlled by ordinary physical means
    2. When there is a likelihood that he will escape unless the belt shock is used

    I do not see any evidence of these two factors being present.

  10. If a defendant pleads not guilty by reason of insanity, how can he represent himself?

    And is there a psychiatric report to confirm insanity or refuting insanity?

    I had never heard of the use of stun belts before, but from reading posts about this, it seems to be turning the court into a circus rather than promoting dignity and respect? Isn’t this another example of a bad choice?

    Comments from the judge indicate that they have little idea of how to handle a disruptive prisoner who is trying to ridicule proceedings.

    I just don’t understand how the system can pick the one solution that is going to bounce back at them with disastrous consequences.

    Why is there no wisdom? Why is a disruptive prisoner not removed from court and proceedings conducted by a counsel if he is not fit to conduct his own defence? For if he was fit to conduct his own defence he would he able to do this and on this case it looks like he isn’t?

    Why not have x3 strikes and you are out system, after which time, a lawyer is appointed and the defendant removed from the court as deemed fit, to hear proceedings remotely but not to participate save through counsel?

    Because in a battle of wills, as in this case, the defendant has won and it is the court that looks to be the ass?

    I think this method is impetuous and signals some desparation on behalf of the authorities. If behaviour is disruptive the solution is to prevent the personal participation of the defendant.

    Abraham Lincoln said something along the lines of “when you give someone power you will see their character”.

    Such an example is to be seen in this case and it is not something to admire. Does it reveal the character of a Nation?

    I hope not.

  11. JT says in the article: “Yet, to hit him with a high voltage for showing disrespect, it raises serious question of judicial judgement and proportionality.” Think about what you say here JT. This goes way beyond “judicial judgement”. This is beyond the Pale. The Pale is The Paletinate. This is the kind of thing that Stalin or Hitler would approve. Yet, to hit him with a high voltage for showing disrespect, it raises serious question of judicial judgement and proportionality.This is assault and battery against a shackled human with a deadly weapon. Yes, electric shock, is lethal. Tasers are lethal weapons. So are these shock jackets. Maybe JT is being facetious. Maybe JT lives in Texas or Yemen.

  12. bam bam

    I am a big fan of using humor to deliver messages (see my first comment above). I didn’t spot the humor. Probably me. Sorry. I loathe bad judges and bad prosecutors.

  13. These sort of things happened in Germany from 1933 to Hitler’s end in 1945. We would charge one of those German judges at Nuremberg Trials for war crimes, crimes against humanity. We set some precedents. We (America) were the “exceptional” nation state. This judge and his entourage needs to be prosecuted. Or, shot from a bridge when they are driving home. This is why God made rifles. Tyranny needs to be put on trial in Texas.

  15. I have mixed emotions on this. I’ve seen first hand the immense disrespect loudly and demonstrably shown towards judges.

    The guy in that picture has a jail issued suicide apron on. He was probably a suicide risk and was put in a single highly watched cell.

    Not sure the shock belts work but when a judge keeps them in jail another night for not cooperating, they lean fast, but costs the county more money.

    I have to add though, I bet the coverage of this story would be national, if he was any other race but Caucasian. People are way too sensitive today. Imagine if this were 1640, this guy would be crushed to death by rocks, for the disrespect he showed the judge. We’ve come along way baby!

  16. Don

    Just a little humor on my part. My comment wasn’t meant to be taken quite so literally. Should I have prefaced my remark with an admonition to not take my words literally?

  17. bam bam

    You could say the same thing if the judge had thrown a brick at the defendant and hit him in the head. I have pissed off many judges in court, sometimes by mistake, and sometimes not, just doing my job. I learned a lot from my mistakes. Judges found ways to make me remember those mistakes for a very long time without shocking me.

  19. Judge Julius Hoffman would have loved to have a shock belt @ his disposal. When I was a house dick @ the Drake Hotel Judge Hoffman lived @ the adjacent Drake Towers Apartments. He used to come to the Drake barber shop every day for a shave. It would come as no shock to most that he was a tiny man, just like the current teeny tiny Mayor Rahm. We would have a much less violent history if all men were the same height.

  20. A revolting development regarding current events. Judge should not have made an exAMPle of him.

Comments are closed.