Distracted Judge Is Being Investigated For Checking Her Facebook During Murder Trial
I know our legal system isn’t perfect, but I believe it can work very well when handled responsibly. This story, however, is not an example of responsible courtroom proceedings. A judge is being investigated and faces punishment for looking at Facebook and being otherwise distracted by her smartphone during a murder hearing.
According to Insider, an Oklahoma judicial ethics panel has opened an investigation into a state judge who was reportedly overseeing her first case. Judge Traci Soderstrom, 50, was caught on a security camera texting and scrolling through Facebook during opening statements and testimony in the trial of a man charged with the beating death of his girlfriend’s son.
Wrong Place, Wrong Time
The trial began last month in Chandler, Oklahoma, about 45 miles northeast of Oklahoma City. Judge Soderstrom, who was sworn in this past January, was messaging for minutes at a time, as well as searching for and sending animated GIFs. At one point, she even checked her phone while the mother of the victim gave her tearful testimony. Yeesh.
Surveillance footage shows Soderstrom holding her phone in her lap or sometimes set it down in a drawer at her desk throughout the proceedings. At one point, the judge even moved the position of the ceiling security camera, according to a report. So Soderstrom knew she was being watched and continued this behavior anyway. And all of this was after she had ordered members of the jury to turn off their phones. You can see some video below.
The Judge Is Not Alone
There’s no question that our smartphones can be big distractions. I recently saw two thirty-somethings using their phones in the middle of a church service. I don’t know, maybe they were texting each other about where to get lunch afterward. At least it wasn’t during a funeral. But seriously, there are times and places where you just shouldn’t even have a phone in your hand. Take it from someone who has made that mistake himself.
At the trial's start, Lincoln County District Judge Traci Soderstrom told the jury to power off or place in airplane mode all electronic devices.
— The Oklahoman (@TheOklahoman_) July 20, 2023
She then got on her own cellphone over and over again.
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