Labels: contempt of court, Court of Appeals, judges, jurors did not follow court order, lenawee circuit court, show cause for contempt, violate court order
Judges should expect their orders to be followed. So it did not surprise me when I read an article reposted in Michigan Lawyers Weekly (original article from the Daily Telegram dated July 12, 2014) about a Lenawee County Circuit Court Judge who was angry at jurors who did not follow her court order. Good for her! She should make sure potential jurors show up to court as ordered. Likewise, the judge was completely within her rights to issue bench warrants for the jurors who did not show up. I fully support her actions in this regard.
Whether I agree with a judges's decision or not, I always advise my clients to follow the court's orders. There is nothing worse than finding out that your client decided to ignore the judge, or willfully violate an order they did not agree with.
What I found ironic, however, was that I have been appealing this same Lenawee Circuit judge for not following orders from the Michigan Court of Appeals in a case for one of my clients in a custody appeal. Again, whether the lower court agrees with the Court of Appeals ruling or not, the lower court must still follow the orders of a higher court.
