Judge questions domestic violence victim

[teflep]

BALTIMORE —
A Baltimore County judge is in hot water because of the way he treated a woman in a domestic violence case.

As I-Team lead investigative reporter Jayne Miller reported, it is really double trouble because of what the same judge did several years ago.

Judge Bruce Lamdin sat in Baltimore County District Court until last week when he was removed from the bench pending review of his handling of a case that left a woman in tears and begging for help.

Video: House of Ruth response to case

Miller said the 33-year-old woman went to Lamdin's courtroom in December seeking protection from her husband. She described two incidents that happened in the couple's White Marsh home that caused her to ask for the husband to be removed from the house.

In a courtroom recording, the woman said, "On or about Nov. 27, he pinned me to a shelf, busted my arm open, left a gash in my forearm. He then threw me down on the floor and stomped me in the ribs so hard that I peed my pants. My oldest, who was 12 years old, got my son and hid in a closet with a hammer and called someone to come get us."

In 2008, Lamdin was suspended without pay for 30 days by the Court of Appeals for inappropriate comments he made in a variety of cases, Miller reported. In this case, he spent nearly 30 minutes questioning the woman's motive and criticizing her decisions.

"I believe he is a threat to the safety and well-being of my children and I. I just finished graduate school, and I have no means by which to vacate the house. And I need him to be not there until I can ..." the woman said in a court recording.

"Ma'am, there are shelters," Lamdin said.

"I suppose there are, sir," the woman said.
BALTIMORE —
"It confounds me that people tell me they are scared for their life, and then they stay in a situation where they can remove themselves and go to a shelter," Lamdin said.

Lamdin repeatedly noted the couple's house was owned only by the woman's husband and made clear he was reluctant to put the husband out.

"Where is he going to live if I put him out of the house?" Lamdin asked in the recording.

"At his parents," the woman said. "Out of his house? How can you not say it's our house? I am his wife."

"It's his house," Lamdin said.

"That's not what the police said," the woman said.

"I don't care what the police say," Lamdin said.

Lamdin questioned the woman's decision to return to her husband after a prior breakup and twice accused her of thinking only of money.

"Because you allow money to control your better judgment. Because it's the easy way out," Lamdin said.

"That's not it at all," the woman said.


"You can get out of there anytime you want," Lamdin said.

"With what? With what?" the woman said.

"That's not my concern. It's your concern. Your whole concern is money," Lamdin said.

"You can't feed children on (inaudible), sir," the woman said.

"What you've done and what you continue to do has been based on what is the economically easy road for you," Lamdin said. "If your concern was really the safety of your children and yourself, you'd already be out of there. But as always, based on your testimony, it comes back to the almighty dollar. And you can't afford to."

Lamdin did grant the woman's request. He issued a temporary protective order putting her husband out, but only after he told the woman the court order was nothing more than paper.

"You can hold a piece a paper right up in front of this gentleman and he can shoot you right through it. It's no guarantee," Lamdin said.

At one point in the hearing, the woman was so distraught, she told the judge, "I'll just leave. You can drop the whole thing."

This isn't the first suspension for Lamdin. The judge was suspended for 30 days without pay in 2008 for inappropriate comments in a variety if cases.

"I think what troubles me most is this woman had come to court because she was really scared," said Dorothy Lenning, an attorney with the House of Ruth. "Instead of helping, the judge torments her, harasses her, really tortures her through what should be a really simple process."

More...


Read more: www.wbaltv.com/news/maryland/i-team/Complaint-filed-against-Baltimore-County-judge/-/10640252/16482220/-/1igtjbz/-/index.html#ixzz267ieK0xG

[ttt]

:-| :-| :-| :-| :-| :-| +o(

[teflep]

I am so angry. Of course, someone posted about the judge in AZ and had to go partisan (oh, brewer). So, if she comments on this (appointed by a dem), I may lose it.

[ttt]

This has zero to do with politics and everything to do with the fact that this judge is a huge asshole.

[soontobeka]

Fucking disgusting

[teflep]

Sept 10, 2012 21:24:00 GMT -5 ttt said:

This has zero to do with politics and everything to do with the fact that this judge is a huge asshole.

Amen. I don't get why she had to draw in politics for these judges. She is annoying, though....almost the liberal rich. Almost

[terpsfan]

I saw this on the news last week!! Normally I don't pay attention but DH had it on and the recording just caught my attention...OMG I cannot believe what I heard! I told DH I'd probably be in jail for punching the judge if I were present.

[teflep]

I think the judge needs to realize what statements like this do to those affected. Don't read the description of what her monster did.

[Deleted]

I just gasped outloud reading this.

How fucking abhorrent. I didn't realize it was 1938 up in this bitch.

[basilosaurus]

OMFG. Sadly, I heard something similar recently from a new friend. Sometimes I just can't believe the world that surrounds me.

[druidp]

FUCK. Where's the hammer the kids grabbed to protect themselves? And don't fucking tell me THEY were only thinking of money when they hid in the closet from their own fucking FATHER.

This guy is the lowest form of humanity.

[summer]

This was my daily dose of rage. Thanks, tef.

[Deleted]

I listened to the whole thing the other day. It's awful. And the judge also misses the big point of the woman's request ( I think this article might too, I didn't see it mentioned) - she doesn't want a divorce right now. Her H suffered from PTSD (that was why he tried to burn the house down - no one was home but him) after being discharged from the military and she is trying to force him to get help
and to keep herself safe at the same time. It's beyond sad she couldn't do that.

Anyway the judge basically just tells her that she values money more than her safety. It's appalling.

[orangeblossom]

Sept 11, 2012 6:35:41 GMT -5 pennypenny said:

Wow. This reminds me of another local judge who treated a victim in this manner. Yep, her crazy estranged husband set her on fire outside of a T-Mobile store where she worked.

That case was awful and the judge was such a piece of work. He was do dismissive. I believe he said something like "Well people in hell want ice water" or something else crazy like that.

[IIOY]

Where is spenjamins? She probably approves of this judge's approach.

[brit1017]

What a callous asshole.

I really hope he is removed from the bench. At the very least, he should be pulled off DV cases.

[One Girl In All The World]

::hangs head:: This happened in my county. I heard this story last week and just couldn't believe it.

[Kattey]

This shit pisses me off. Like it's so easy to pack up and leave. Shit, I had to move 1000 miles away from my abuser to get him to leave me alone, and we were just boyfriend/girlfriend with no kids.

"I can't imagine telling a mother to take the kids to the shelter because "where will the father live?" I think that's what pissed me off the most.

[meshaliuknits]

OMFG, I cannot cobble together enough curses to adequately express my thoughts on that judge.

[secretlyevil]

Sept 10, 2012 21:25:01 GMT -5 drruth said:

Sept 10, 2012 21:24:00 GMT -5 ttt said:

This has zero to do with politics and everything to do with the fact that this judge is a huge asshole.

this

Most definitely

[emilyj]

On or about Nov. 27, he pinned me to a shelf, busted my arm open, left a gash in my forearm. He then threw me down on the floor and stomped me in the ribs so hard that I peed my pants. My oldest, who was 12 years old, got my son and hid in a closet with a hammer and called someone to come get us."


After reading this, why is the correct answer to "But where will the father live?" not "In jail"?

Because fuck.