Well-known TV personality Judge Joe Brown was arrested Monday after a judge ordered him to spend five days in jail for contempt of court in Memphis.
The former Shelby County Criminal Court judge was said to be representing a client pro bono in a child support case, during a Juvenile Court hearing.
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Juvenile Court Magistrate Harold Horne, who was presiding over the case, denied Brown’s request to dismiss the case. That’s when 66-year-old Brown got angry and began yelling insults and became verbally abusive saying, “On what authority do you sit by the way? As a former judge here, we have a rule in the 30th judicial district that says every single magistrate, referee has to be unanimously approved by every circuit, chancery, and criminal court judge. I don’t recall that your name’s ever been submitted sir!”
Horne gave Brown 24 hours in jail for contempt of court as a sign to calm down. As Brown’s voice continued to escalate as he left the courthouse, the judge increased the jail time to five days. To which Judge Brown yelled, “This is a circus sir. That’s three days. You can do all you want! Four days. You don’t have the jurisdiction. Five days.”
After being released from jail, Brown told reporters he was “a little hot under the collar” and felt his arrest was dirty politics.
Brown’s television show “Judge Joe Brown” was cancelled in 2013 after 15 seasons. Since then he is attempting to enter the political ring. Many are looking as Brown’s actions as a publicity ploy for his upcoming election for Shelby County District Attorney. He later compared himself to Martin Luther King, Jr in a Facebook post that angered viewers.