Most Bizarre Court Punishments

While no one like going to jail, many are even more outraged at judges’ ordering less-than-standard punishments to fit their crimes. Here are a few examples of bizarre court punishments.

Eye for an Eye, Hair for Hair

A 13-year old girl and her 11-year-old friend played with a 3-year-old girl at a McDonald’s, and then used scissors to cut several inches of hair from the little one’s beautiful locks. For this case, and other charges of assault, the 13-year-old was ordered to serve 30 days in detention and serve 276 hours of community service.  The judge offered to cut the community service by 150 hours upon her mother’s cutting her hair off right in court. The mother took the deal, but has filed a formal complaint against the judge.

Read the Bible

A few weeks ago, a South Carolina Judge ordered a woman to read the Book of Job from the Old Testament as part of her punishment for injuring two people while driving drunk. The woman was also sentenced to eight years behind bars and five years probation.

Face the Music

A man facing a $150 fine for playing rap music too loudly on his car stereo was told by a judge that the fine could be reduced to $35 for spending 20 hours listening to classical music. The idea was that he’d get to see what it’s like being forced to listen to music you don’t like. The guy lasted about 15 minutes before opting to pay the fine in full.

Take Your Wife on a Date

A minor domestic incident (a man pushed his wife onto a couch and held his fist up to her in an argument over his not wishing her a happy birthday) led a judge to order, “Flowers, a birthday card, Red Lobster, bowling,”—and immediate marriage counseling.

Book Reports

A 23-year-old man arrested on suspicion of attempting to sell a phony grenade launcher to an undercover agent was told by a judge that he could be released from jail, pending trial, on the condition that he read a book for an hour a day and spend 30 minutes writing daily book reports.

Chicken Suit

A man convicted of soliciting a prostitute was ordered to wear a chicken suit around town. Judge Mike Cicconetti, who made the order, argues that his bizarre punishments are not a laughing matter, but that traditional fines and jail time just aren’t doing the trick, and that such out-of-jail punishments help relieve the overcrowded jail system.

While it may make someone think twice about what they did, does seeing someone in a chicken suit or writing a book report really make someone else think twice about committing a crime?