Isn't it obvious?

Hennepin County Minnesota District judge Robert Lynn, apparently thinking he was in Mayberry, was surprised when unhandcuffed convicted murderer Dominique Jefferson went beserk at his sentencing hearing. He had been given a light sentence of 35 years for coldblooded killing of Mohamed Moulay el-Boudknili at the Super USA Store at 3807 Fremont Av. N. in the Camden neighborhood of Minneapolis.

The way the article is written, it does not appear that criminal Jefferson had a problem with the incarceration part of his sentence, but rather the restitution:

Dominique Jefferson just had been sentenced to 35 years in prison on Friday for killing a convenience store clerk when he became angry after a judge told him he would have to pay an undetermined amount of restitution.

Hey, 35 years is one thing, but you're going ask me to pay money!? Criminal Jefferson sure didn't like that:

He began swearing and refused to cooperate when Hennepin County District Judge Robert Lynn ordered him removed from the Minneapolis courtroom, said Jeff Bakken, spokesperson for the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office.

Jefferson, who was not handcuffed, pulled away from Deputy Joel Flygaren and the two scuffled on the courtroom floor, Bakken said. Flygaren was hit above his right eye, Bakken said.

Here's the nice judge:


Does anyone wonder why the judge would allow a murderer facing a long sentence to be unhandcuffed or unshackled? These aren't boyscouts, they're killers for cryin' out loud! Here's the given speculation:

Peggy Rogers of the National Center for State Courts in Williamsburg, Va., said there have been no studies on defendants being handcuffed during court proceedings.

It generally is considered a violation of a defendant's civil rights if he or she is seen in handcuffs or jail clothing, which would indicate the person is in custody, she said.

Rambix would argue that it's even prudent to have handcuffs and/or shackles on the prisoner at all times, even in front of the jury. However, Rambix understands that some bleeding hearts would have concerns over the jury being biased by the hardware. Fair enough. But this was a sentencing hearing. This is generally not done in front of the jury. In any event, who wouldn't go nuts after getting a relatively long sentence, given the opportunity? Certainly many criminals would. They'd have nothing to lose, especially in Minnesota.

The judge endangered the public and most certainly the bailiffs when he didn't insist on restraints for the prisoner. This is not excuseable; let's use some common sense.

Here's the judge's statistics. Note the low (2.2%) Percentage of Notices to Remove. This means the defense likes him, which further means that he's a softie.

Remember Atlanta?