Woman Turns FURIOUS at the Judge — Instantly Jailed

All right. Come here. >> Take her out of here. [snorts] >> Miss Van, if you think you can keep it together, do you want to speak to me? >> Please [snorts] come forward. All right. Well, let me hear your statement and what you want me to know. >> Hi, my name is Kimberly Van. I was a pedestrian versus car. I sustained two fractured bones below the right knee, a ripped solius muscle. My C5C6 disc was collapsed and had to be fused. And I had a herniated disc in my lower back and the never ending fear of getting hit. So when Edwin stated that I walked into his car, it was far from the truth. Edwin has trouble telling the truth. I believe from his past record and his present record, he refuses to obey the law. He still continues to drink alcohol and drive on a suspended license. [clears throat] He cares about no one but himself. He hit me with his car and left me. He talked his girlfriend into following a false police report so he wouldn't go to jail. I am asking the court [snorts] to hold him at the max jail time that is possible for this. I'm also asking for probation time and alcohol monitoring if allowed this. I also believe this shouldn't be offered work release his he should go to jail and lose everything like I have my job and all. >> Well, I'll let you finish and then I got some questions. >> When Edwin hit me, I was a sole income for my home. I have four children and a disabled husband. I have now been fired from American Axel because I was unable to return to work after surgery. [snorts] I have lost my medical insurance and this is still affecting me to this day. [clears throat] [snorts] I still have pain in my knees and my legs and my neck. [snorts] I please do not please do not be lenient when you go to sense instead today. >> Now the first I was aware that you had lost your job was when Mr. Nvsinger said it. I was not aware that you'd lost your job at American Axle. Tell me about that. So I they wanted me to return to work back July 25th [snorts] and I was unable to return to work because I had to have my neck fused. So I was fired August 17th. >> All right. I wasn't aware of that. [clears throat] Now I'm no doctor. All right. Well, what else did you want included? >> What do you mean? You said there were some other things you would request that. >> Um, I'm requesting that if there is possible for probation time after jail, I'm requesting that. I'm requesting alcohol monitoring if it's allowed. I'm requesting that he doesn't have work release. He shouldn't have these extra things that I wasn't allowed to have. >> Um, I can't do both. I can't give him the maximum jail sentence and probation. Uh there's nothing else I can do to him after that. >> I'm so confused because I talked to the prosecutor and yet today we don't have a prosecutor to stand here with me with what he has said at the last trial. >> Well, >> cuz [clears throat] he's the one that brought up that he could possibly get probation after jail time and we could possibly ask for alcohol monitoring because this is how this situation became diabetic. He doesn't drink. >> Stop. Stop. Stop. you'll be in the same boat. Um, all right. Um, let's back up. This was authorized by Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Oair. He [clears throat] charged it as leaving the scene of a personal injury accident and driving suspended. >> [clears throat] >> I have a longstanding frustration in personal injury accident cases where I don't know if they have all the information they need at the time of the charging. It is a felony to leave the scene of a serious personal injury accident when you have a suspended driver's license. >> [clears throat] >> punishable by up to 5 years imprisonment. So, he wasn't charged with that, but he doesn't have a suspended driver's license. >> It was revoked. He's got a revoke. >> No license. >> It was taken away because of two DUIs and hitting a structure before me. >> Um, well, [snorts] you're aware of that. I'm aware of it because I was here in 197 and 1997 and 1999. He had two drunk drivingings and another charge fle looting, but [clears throat] they were almost 30 years ago. So, his driving record doesn't even show it. His driving record shows he has no license. It does not show that he suspended or revoked. And uh so it was charged as that, but I look carefully at his driver's license. There's actually nothing on it. That stuff is so old it doesn't show up on his driver's license. Um so what the SOS shows is he has no license, which is different than suspended or revoked. All right. There's also an offense for leaving the scene of a serious personal injury accident, which is also a five-year felony. [laughter] And um I guess no one bothered to find out what the extent of your injuries were. I've had six, seven cases like this. Um, and I don't [clears throat] know where the blame lies. I think sometimes the prosecutors don't know what they don't know. I don't have >> [snorts] >> uh what he had back on February 7th or whenever this was authorized, but I believe what you have is a serious injury. So, I want to shout >> in my neck for the rest of my life. >> Yeah. Well, it certainly qualifies. uh you want him to go to jail for the maximum amount of time. You want him to lose his job. You want him to uh be on probation and alcohol monitoring. And um none of that is going to fix your injuries. Um he had an accident and then he panicked and left. The prosecutor under two different theories, I suppose, could have charged this as a felony. They chose not to. And they know more about it than I do. So, it's not a felony. It's a misdemeanor. Um, and the way it's charged, it is a district court misdemeanor. There's a there is another misdemeanor, uh, [snorts] accident, traffic violation with serious personal injury. So they never explored the extent of your injury which was serious. Uh now he contends you ran back into the shop and maybe you did and then >> I had hope by >> All right. Well, nonetheless, sometimes it takes a minute. Your body's full of adrenaline. You're in shock and but you're I don't dispute the fact that you're debilitated. I am sorry that you lost your job. It doesn't seem as straightforward as that. Um, if your doctor said, "Did Were you cleared by your doctor to go back to work?" >> No, I had a work note stating that I was supposed to be off of work because I had surgery. I wasn't supposed to return to work until the 29th of this month. >> Well, no litigation. >> All right. You So you does the union fighting that with the >> Nope. The union's not helping me at all. >> But there is a action against >> there's an action against American Access >> for wrongful discharge. >> Correct. >> Okay. So that's not completely a foreclosed issue. >> No. [clears throat] No. This is an ongoing issue. But I wouldn't have lost my job if I wouldn't have gotten hit by a car and I was the sole income for my family. >> I I accept that. uh similar to the lady that uh uh lost her husband. So, as far as I can tell, Mr. Smith hasn't been in trouble in about 25 years. Um I was prosecutor in 1997 and 1999. I became judge in 2003 and I've seen once since I came to the bench. So, he has a job at American Axle, he has a family, he has expenses. Um, and uh he did a dumb thing uh that with a serious consequence. Um the prosecutor makes the charge, the judge makes the sentence. Um, and uh, this charge is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 93 days in jail. >> How many? >> Let me make sure I got it right. Maybe this is a one year. I'll make sure I got my complaint right. Yeah, one year and or $1,000 personal injury accident. So, even if they had charged serious injury, personal accident, well, if they charge serious injury, personal accident would be a felony. If they had charged driving suspended with a serious personal injury accident would be a felony. Wasn't charged that way. So, it's a punishable by up to a year in jail. Now, one of the reasons for the leaving the scene crime is I've seen this people are in an accident. They leave the scene and they leave the person there on the side of the road. Um, uh, >> he left me. He just decided to say a comment before he left. >> All right. We'll hear about that in a minute. But he left you there in a public place where there were other people around. So, he didn't leave you laying in a ditch bleeding. Uh, he knew there was going to be some response. And at that point, he didn't know the extent of your injuries. He knew that, you know, his version is you ran into his car. His version is uh >> so coming off the hood of his car. I I walked into it. >> Yeah. >> You never even not. >> All right. All right. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. All right. So, [clears throat] you wanted to tell me something else. >> Just go ahead. >> Well, you were going to say one more thing. All right. Nothing I say here is going to make you [clears throat] satisfied. No, nothing I say you make me satisfied at all. >> Say that again. >> I don't expect you to make me satisfied at all. I, you know, it a year in jail is pretty much a slap on the hand. [snorts] But for him to sit in here and this is a game for him is a joke. [clears throat] >> Yeah. Really? No. No, ma'am. >> Stop. Stop. Stop. You're not helping things at all. Um, and neither are you. Uh, I can't make you happy and I can't make you remorseful. [snorts] Uh, and uh, other than what you said here, your version is that I don't know. I wasn't there. Usually they'd have some video, but I don't believe there's any video of this. It would have been helpful maybe for all concern if there had been some video in the parking lot to show exactly what happened. HR done their own investigation and he admitted to HR that I was on the hood of his car. >> All right. >> So there is a video I should say um the accident is out of frame. >> Yes, that's what I understood. >> Yes. So [clears throat] that >> we didn't actually see what happened. >> No. >> Yes. All right. There is no right answer to this. In fact, I'm going to use this as a fact scenario at our next judicial training in January. I am going to do a 12-month probation and he isn't going to use any alcohol or any control. >> So, he's not even going to jail for this. >> Stop. >> I'm just asking a question. >> I'm doing the sentencing. Uh, stop. >> This is >> He's not in charge of this. I am. And, uh, no matter what I say here, you're not going to be satisfied with it. So, I might >> No, I'd like him to go to jail. >> Yes, I certainly understand that. Um, in fact, you're so angry that you undermine your effectiveness because nothing that would be done here would satisfy you. So, you're so angry. You've been angry at everybody. You've been angry at the prosecutors. You've been angry at me. You've been angry at the victim advocate people's not here. >> Well, I'm not very happy about that either, but I saw some exchanges between you and the prosecutor. You're so un you're so angry that you're unreasonable and it undermines your effectiveness. I'll just leave it at that. No alcohol test as directed by a police officer or probation officer. No drugs, including marijuana. I don't know if you use marijuana. It's eligible for recreational use. Uh but you can't use that. No driving. You don't have a driver's license. uh you'll have a very difficult time getting your driver's license, particularly after this. You might as well accept the fact that you'll probably never have a driver's license. Those two old drinking driving offenses, the driver license appeal division, the Secretary of State, have an even longer memory than I do. And so you would have to prove to them that you're eligible to get a license back with a restriction. So, you may have been able to do that, but you throw this leaving the scene into the mix and you're just out of out of chances. Uh, the fine is zero. There's no need for a court fine. Um, I'm going to order 10 days jail to be served either on weekends or work release. I'm not going to make you lose your job. >> $75 crime victim's rights fee. $50 state minimum fee, $150 attorney fee retained. >> No way. I think you told me that. Thank you. And a $480 probation oversight fee. >> Go get her. [clears throat] Please come up and have a seat. >> Whatever you want. >> All right. You want to curse at me a little more? Is there anything else you have to say? All right, you should just go now. You're good to go. >> [ __ ] >> All right, come here. >> I find that you're in contempt of court and you're going to jail for 24 hours effective right now. Yes, really. Officer, I'd please ask you to take her into the back. Don't look at Mr. Reed, you did this to yourself. You're going to jail for 24 hours for your continuing disrespect. >> I am sorry about everything that happened to you in the course of this accident, but I gave you a chance to just leave and then >> she reported. >> She can go to jail right now. I went out of my way to try to not do this. And [laughter] uh you don't have to like it, but you have to be respectful. when you went out of your way to be not respectful. She can go to jail right now. [snorts] 24 [clears throat] hours, you're found to be in contempt. >> Can you get her? Take her out of here. >> I'm going with you. >> You're not following. >> I didn't know which way to go. >> She has abused neck. Can you grab her by civil liability? Comment your opinion, like the video, and subscribe for more real courtroom moments.