ACLU of Texas calls for judge to step aside
The ACLU of Texas says it's time a Houston criminal court judge steps down from the bench because of comments he made to a local newspaper.
Meet Judge Michael McSpadden. In 2008, McSpadden was named the best criminal court judge in Houston by the Houston Press. That was then, this is now. Just last July, McSpadden found himself the target of protests. That’s after forcing criminal defendants to appear in court every day until they could afford to hire an attorney.
Now the judge has this to contend with and it’s what’s described as blatant racism and bias from the bench. When interviewed by the Houston Chronicle about the county’s bail bond practices and why some defendants don't get a personal reconnaissance bond, the 36-year jurist said, “Almost everybody we see here has been tainted in some way before we see them…they’re not good risks.”
He went on to say, “The young black men and its primarily young black men rather than young black women charged with felony offenses, they’re not getting good advice from their parents…”
The controversial judge said, “Who do they get advice from? Rag-tag organizations like Black Lives Matter, which tell you ‘Resist police,’ which is the worst thing in the world you could tell a young black man… They teach contempt for the police, for the whole justice system.”
On the Factor to talk about this is attorney Carmen Roe and Black Lives Matter activist Ashton P. Woods. We called Judge McSpadden earlier this week and he declined to comment.