Turns out Zoom court hearings and making lunch don’t go together like peanut butter and jelly.
A Detroit judge kicked a single mother out of a Zoom court hearing after she spent the start of her virtual hearing making a PB&J sandwich.
A video from the hearing shows Asja Outerbridge, a fashion stylist, making the sandwich in plain sight during her hearing to 36th District Court Judge Sean Perkins’ dismay. Perkins also took issue with Outerbridge’s court attire, which included a T-shirt and bathrobe.
"It was just a lot going on," Outerbridge told Fox 2 Detroit. "I was having a mommy day. I click on the video and I see the judge that I had, and I see my robe and some peanut butter, and I say 'oh my God.’”
Outerbridge told the judge that her three-year-old daughter was home sick from school, and she was trying to cater to her.
“Ms Outerbridge, I’m sorry your daughter is sick, but again, you’re in court, OK? And we’re going to treat it as such,” Perkins told her.
Outerbridge was in court for a misdemeanor for allegedly having an open alcohol container as a passenger in a car. She entered the virtual courtroom around 1 p.m. despite Perkins claiming her hearing was scheduled for 9 a.m.
Fed up with her lateness and inappropriate attire, Perkins booted Outerbridge from the courtroom.
Outerbridge told Fox 2 Detroit that she waited three hours in the virtual waiting room before her hearing and wished the judge had been more accommodating, but she admits she could have handled the situation differently.
“I owe the judge an apology. I could’ve come better prepared, and I could’ve handled it a lot better,” Outerbridge said.
Outerbridge also questioned the need for virtual court, as clips of her hearing went viral thanks to it being streamed on YouTube for the world to watch.
"It’s not even COVID anymore. What are we doing here? Let’s put court back in the courtrooms," she told the news outlet.
