(Image
via
Getty)
Sometimes
you’ve
just
reached
your
limit
with
a
particular
person/situation.
And
rather
than
dig
in
deeper,
it’s
time
to
just
walk
away.
(At
least
that’s
what
I
understand
a
healthy
emotional
response
to
be,
while
my
reality
often
involves
a
lot
more
yelling.)
Anyway,
it
looks
like
district
court
judge
Otis
Wright
of
the
Central
District
of
California
has
that
particular
life
skill
on
lockdown.
As
reported
by
Law360,
Judge
Wright
recused
himself
from
a
case
with
an
“OK.
We’re
done.
Seriously,
we
are
done.”
Which
is
like
the
most
relatable
a
federal
judge
has
ever
been.
So,
what
actually
happened?
In
a
criminal
case,
Callie
G.
Steele
of
the
Federal
Public
Defenders
Office
requested
a
mistrial
arguing
that
the
jury
could
see
her
client
in
ankle
shackles,
which
is
contrary
to
Ninth
Circuit
precedent.
While
noting
the
catch-22
of
trying
to
suss
out
what
the
jury
saw,
Judge
Wright
indicated
he’d
grant
the
mistrial:
“The
only
way
to
find
out
would
be
—
we
would
have
to
interview
each
and
every
one
of
them.
‘Did
you
see
shackles?
Did
you
see
shackles?’”
the
judge
said.
“And
by
doing
that,
we’re
going
to
alert
everyone
for
certain
that
she’s
in
custody,
and
that
defeats
the
purpose.
So
I’m
going
to
grant
your
motion.
And
this
is
going
to
be
a
big
inconvenience
to
an
awful
lot
of
people.
The
government
had
people,
you
know,
coming
from
out
of
town,
et
cetera,
et
cetera,
et
cetera,
but
so
be
it.”
Damaris
Diaz,
from
the
U.S.
Attorney’s
Office,
wanted
to
consider
potential
alternatives
short
of
a
mistrial.
As
the
judge
and
Diaz
were
discussing
this,
Steele
stood
and
asked
to
be
heard.
And
that’s
when
that
final
straw,
it
broke
the
camel’s
back:
“Did
I
not
give
you
what
you
asked
for?”
the
judge
asked
Steele,
before
telling
her
to
sit
down.“Your
Honor,
I
would
like
to
address
the
government’s
proposal,”
Steele
said.“And
I’m
going
to
recuse
myself,”
the
judge
said.
“OK.
We’re
done.
Seriously,
we
are
done.
I
am
no
longer
able
to
dispassionately
play
this
game
anymore,
because
this
is
like
fun
and
games,
and
I
do
believe
that
intentional
misrepresentations
are
being
made
to
the
court.
I’m
going
to
recuse
myself.
I’m
declaring
a
mistrial.
It
will
go
back
on
the
calendar,
go
back
on
the
wheel
for
reassignment.
We
are
done.”
With
that,
Judge
Wright’s
OUT,
y’all.
Judge
Fernando
M.
Olguin
got
the
reassigned
case.
And
don’t
you
wish
getting
yourself
off
that
case
you
hate
was
this
easy?
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
(@Kathryn1).