A defendant showed up to a court’s Zoom stream with a deeply unfortunate screenname. No, his name was not really “Buttfucker 3000.”
This happened in an arraignment hearing posted to YouTube on Tuesday from the court of Judge Jeffrey Middleton in St. Joseph County, Michigan.
“Then we’ll bring this fool in,” said Middleton.
In popped in a man with the user name “Buttfucker 3000.” Middleton asked him his name. There was a brief pause before the defendant realized the judge was talking to him. He appeared to say his name as “Nathaniel Saxton.”
“Your name’s not Buttfucker 3000, you yo-ho, logging in to my court with that as your screenname.” said the judge, later adding, “What kind of idiot logs into court like that?”
The defendant said he did not believe that he typed anything like that. He apologized. Middleton briefly kicked him out of the active Zoom feed.
The defendant returned minutes later. He said his sister set up his Zoom account, and he noted the use of his Bluetooth speaker. The name was an inside joke, he said.
“I’m embarrassed,” he said. “I’m sorry” (the new Zoom name said Nathaniel “Saxaon”).
Saxton was in court on a count of possession of drug paraphernalia in the city of Three Rivers. This was described in court an alleged violation of a city ordinance, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $500 fine. The defendant initially pleaded not guilty. Prosecutor John Barnes refused to budge on the charge, saying Saxton was found with items including a used syringe that tested positive of meth residue.
Saxton changed his mind about his plea when Middleton noted the normal fine for this is $200. He admitted to having the syringe and other paraphernalia.
Indeed, he received a total $200 fine.
“Is your sister there?” said the judge.
“No, unfortunately, she is not,” said Saxton.
“Tell her she almost got you put in jail for contempt of court,” said the judge.
Saxton apologized again.
“Okay,” said Middleton.
We’ve written about the judge’s court before regarding a case a lot more serious than the “Buttfucker” mishap. State attorney assistant Deborah Davis was questioning a woman who was allegedly abused by a man. She realized the victim was in the same apartment as the defendant.
“Your honor,” she said. “I have reason to believe that the defendant is in the same apartment as the complaining witness right now, and I am extremely scared for her safety. The fact that she’s looking off to the side and he’s moving around, I want some confirmation that she is safe before we continue.”
Cops checked it out. They discovered the two in the same residence.
“Your Honor, me and Mary both don’t want the no-contact,” said defendant Coby James Harris while being handcuffed. “I ask that that be dropped. I’m sorry I lied to you. I knew the cops were outside. I don’t know why I—”
“Mr. Harris, my advice is, don’t say anything else,” said Middleton. “The hearing is adjourned. Your bond is canceled. If you have $10 million, you can’t bond out. In addition, the prosecutor’s probably also going to charge you with obstruction of justice.”
Just days after that incident went viral, a person with a suspended driver’s license opted to appear in Judge Middleton’s Zoom court while sitting in the driver’s seat of a car.
Colin Kalmbacher contributed to this report.
[Screengrab via Judge Judge Jeffrey Middleton; h/t Kathleen Smith / @KikkiPlanet on Twitter]
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