Detroit judge who had teen handcuffed for sleeping temporarily removed from his docket

A Detroit judge who had a teen girl handcuffed and threatened her with jail time for sleeping in his court and giving him "attitude" has been removed temporarily from his docket and ordered to undergo training, according to a statement from the chief judge in the district.

Following "a swift and thorough internal investigation," the court determined 36th District Court Judge Kenneth King failed to live up to its standard when he forced a 15-year-old girl on a group field trip to his courtroom to put on handcuffs and a jail uniform, Chief Judge William McConico said in a statement Thursday afternoon.

"We hope that these steps will help to reassure the public of the 36th District Court's dedication to serving our community with integrity and fairness," McConico said.

"The 36th District Court, known as 'the people's court,' remains deeply committed to providing access to justice in an environment free from intimidation or disrespect. The actions of Judge King on August 13th do not reflect this commitment."

McConico did not say how long King would be removed from his docket – the judicial schedule courts use to determine which cases a judge will hear. He described the training as "necessary training to address the underlying issues that contributed to this incident."

The 15-year-old girl attended King's court earlier this week with a nonprofit on a field trip. In between hearings, King addressed her and her peers. At one point he appears to see her fall asleep, and shouts at her. Eventually, he has her detained.

She was forced to wear a green jail jumpsuit, had her hands cuffed in front of her and pleaded for forgiveness until she was eventually released.

"We sincerely hope that this incident does not undermine our longstanding relationships with local schools. Our thoughts and actions are now with the student and her family, and we are committed to taking these corrective measures to demonstrate that this incident is an isolated occurrence," McConico said.

"We are dedicated to ensuring that our court continues to uphold the highest standards of fairness and respect."

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The girl's mother, Latoreya Till, told the Free Press Thursday morning her daughter was likely tired because the family currently does not have a permanent place to stay. They did not go to bed until late Wednesday night.

She has retained a lawyer.

"My daughter is hurt. She is feeling scared. She didn't want to go to work. She feels like as if her peers went against her. She was real nervous and intimidated," Till said.

King told the Free Press on Wednesday he acted appropriately.

"I wasn't trying to punish the young lady. What I was trying to do was, I was trying to serve as a deterrence," King said in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon.

"I wanted to instill in this kid that this is not a joke, this is a very serious situation."

King is the presiding judge of the criminal division for the 36th district, overseeing the initial stages of many of the most serious crimes for the district.

Reach Dave Boucher at [email protected] and on X, previously Twitter, @Dave_Boucher1.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit judge who had sleeping girl handcuffed is removed from docket