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Detroit Judge Sued for Handcuffing Teen During Field Trip

A teenager who was compelled to wear jail attire and handcuffs during a field trip to a Detroit courtroom filed a lawsuit against the judge on Wednesday. Her lawyers allege the judge subjected the teen to humiliation, false arrest, and illegal detention, Courthouse News reports. It is the latest fallout since Judge Kenneth King singled out 15-year-old Eva Goodman for falling asleep and having what he considered to be a bad attitude while she was visiting 36th District Court on Aug. 13. King was removed from courtroom duties last week until he completed training, which hasn't started yet. His actions were “extreme and outrageous and calculated for inflicting fear and severe emotional distress,” according to the lawsuit, which seeks more than $75,000.


Goodman fell asleep while she was on a field trip led by a nonprofit group, The Greening of Detroit. Her mother later said she may have been tired because they don't have a permanent address. King said it was her attitude that led him to order the jail clothes, handcuffs and stern words for Goodman — all broadcast on livestream video from his courtroom. He also threatened her in front of her peers with juvenile detention before releasing her. “I wanted this to look and feel very real to her, even though there’s probably no real chance of me putting her in jail,” King told a TV station last week. The teen's mother, Latoreya Till, told reporters that her daughter was still struggling. “It's been pretty devastating,” Till said. “Eva doesn't want to come outside. She doesn't want to be involved with no one else but her family, relatives. It's hard for her to sleep at night. She’s asking me, ‘Why the judge do me like this out of all the kids?’”

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