[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
- Hi, everyone, I'm dan abrams and this is "courtcam."
- Are you ready to take the plea?
[indistinct shouting] - [bleep].
- I'll kill all of you! [bleep] [bleep]!
- I hope you die in prison as well.
♪ ♪
- First up, we're in milwaukee, wisconsin,
For the sentencing of claudette mitchell.
The 37-year-old pled guilty to child neglect
Resulting in death,
When a seven-week-old baby
Died at the day care she operated out of her home.
Mitchell pled guilty and claimed responsibility,
Even though she also said she did not know
How the child died.
An autopsy later revealed the cause of death
To be blunt-force trauma to the child's head.
Now at sentencing,
Mitchell faces a maximum possible sentence
Of 25 years in prison.
In a courtroom packed with more than 50 members
Of the victim's family, anguished reactions
Can be heard from the gallery after mitchell is sentenced
To 3 1/2 years in prison.
[audience gasps, shouts]
Perhaps sensing growing tension in the gallery,
Judge jeffrey wagner issues a warning.
♪ ♪
The message, however, is ignored.
Seconds later, tempers reach a boiling point.
♪ ♪
[indistinct shouting]
♪ ♪
After mitchell's removed from the courtroom,
A brawl breaks out between her supporters
And the victim's family,
Including the baby's father.
♪ ♪
As deputies struggle to separate the families,
The warning sounds of a stun gun can be heard.
[taser clicking]
But it does not end the disturbance in the court.
♪ ♪
From there, the lethal scene plays out.
[shouting continues]
♪ ♪
Ultimately, the victim's father and grandfather
End up on the floor
And handcuffed until the situation
Is brought under control.
Both the victim's father and grandfather claimed
They were just protecting themselves
And were released shortly after.
No one ended up being charged following the courtroom clash.
♪ ♪
Next, we head to atlanta, georgia,
For the sentencing of tex mciver.
The 75-year-old attorney was found guilty of felony murder
For the death of his wife, diane mciver.
♪ ♪
The defendant claimed he accidentally shot mciver
While driving back from their horse farm.
Diane mciver was the president of an airport service company.
Prosecutors believe she was killed for her money.
Mciver pled not guilty,
But after a trial lasting 19 days,
He was convicted.
Before sentencing, friends of the victim
Make heartfelt statements to a packed courtroom.
- The actions have traumatized me.
I lost sleep because I so wanted to believe
That it was an accident.
- This has been one of the saddest
And most horrific incidents that has happened in my life.
To have lost my friend of over 40 years
That was more like a sister than a friend
Has broken my heart.
- Next, it was mciver's turn to speak,
Which is what he did for 15 bizarre minutes,
Touching on just about everything,
Everything, that is, except the crime.
The surreal statement continues as mciver moves on
To his next subject--
Thanking his friends in the community.
Before he was done, he had one more subject
Completely unrelated to the murder--
His godson's favorite basketball team.
♪ ♪
- Finally, he gets around
To discussing the relationship
With his late wife of 11 years.
He goes on to explain just how deep their connection was.
Before announcing his sentence,
Judge robert mcburney
Offers a reaction to mciver's words
And peculiar choice of subject matter.
- I'll tell you what's most telling.
You had as much time as you wanted to share with me
What you thought was important for me to hear,
And we heard about racehorses in australia and chick-fil-a
And telepathy.
I didn't ever hear you say you're sorry for what you did.
♪ ♪
To me, that silence speaks volumes.
- All that was left was the sentence.
- The penalty for felony murder is life.
I'm gonna sentence you, count two, to a term of life
With the possibility of parole.
- Mciver was sentenced to life in prison
And is eligible for parole after 30 years,
When he would be 105 years old.
♪ ♪
- Next, we go to myrtle beach, south carolina,
For a bond hearing.
The defendant's 49-year-old richard hilliard,
Whose charged with voyeurism.
♪ ♪
Hilliard allegedly invited
Both young and underage girls
Onto his yacht, the aptly named "yachts o' trouble,"
And secretly recorded them in the shower.
One of the girls on the boat found the ipad
That was recording the shower, took it,
Gave it to her mother, who turned it in to police.
Before his bond's announced,
Hilliard, who helps run his family business,
Makes a brief statement remotely to the judge.
♪ ♪
Also appearing is one of the victims,
Along with her infuriated mother.
♪ ♪
Next, it's the victim herself
Who offers a few words to the judge.
- Thank you.
- I'm gonna set your bond at $50,000,
Make that a surety bond.
Good luck to you.
♪ ♪
- Hilliard makes bond,
But in the next 24 hours, he's arrested again,
When it's discovered that seven other girls,
Including minors,
Had been secretly videotaped in the nude.
Hilliard goes before a new judge
To ask for a second bond.
- I place your bond at $175,000
That's $25,000 cash or surety.
♪ ♪
Hilliard posts bond a second time,
But his freedom will only be temporary.
Law enforcement would go on to discover
That over the course of eight to ten years,
Hilliard had secretly recorded at least 16 child victims
At various locations, including his yacht,
His homes, and various hotel rooms.
Of the eight total charges he faced,
Hilliard eventually pleaded guilty
To sexual exploitation of a minor
And possession of child pornography.
He's sentenced to 35 years in prison.
♪ ♪
Next, we're in milwaukee, wisconsin,
For the sentencing of benjamin hooks.
The 25-year-old pled guilty
To possession of a firearm by a felon
And two counts of human trafficking.
The trafficking charges
Were for holding a woman captive in his basement,
Chaining her to a pole,
Forcing her to have sex with him and other men.
She was only able to escape when hooks left the house
To go to court to face a charge
Of beating another woman.
- This defendant tied the door shut with wire
So she could not leave.
She was given food sparingly and often had to share it
With a dog who was down there.
- Now before learning his sentence,
Other women who claim
They were sexually assaulted by hooks
Bravely come forward to confront their attacker.
- Been in situations with him to where he has put...
[sniffles] guns in the back of my head
Just because I didn't want to do a sexual act
With his friend.
- When given a chance to speak,
Hooks quietly addresses his victims.
- I pray for you every night.
- But rather than continuing with an apology,
He callously shifts the blame onto the victims.
- I want y'all to become greater women, be independent,
And stop letting people take advantage of you.
- And hooks' attitude goes from bad to worse
After he's hit with an 18-year prison sentence.
- Hey, judge...
- Oh, my god.
♪ ♪
Jesus.
- Audible gasps can be heard after hooks drops that bomb.
- Hey, judge...
- Oh, my god.
- His attorney seems disgusted with his performance as well,
Throws down his folder.
- Jesus.
- Hooks continues to rant
As he's escorted away by deputies.
- [bleep] [bleep].
- He has a final question for the judge.
♪ ♪
Benjamin hooks is currently serving an 18-year sentence
In the wisconsin department of corrections
For human trafficking and gun possession charges.
♪ ♪
- Next, we head to family court
In putnam county, west virginia,
For a divorce hearing.
The parties are arthur hage, a church pastor,
And his estranged wife, lillian.
The judge is william watkins iii.
♪ ♪
At issue is hage's refusal to sign a deed
Which would allow his wife to sell their home.
But before things get started,
Judge watkins has a stern warning for hage.
- Mr. Hage, if you say one word out of turn,
You're going to jail-- do you understand me?
♪ ♪
Yes or no?
- Judge watkins is angry with hage
Because he believes the pastor revealed personal information
About him through the media.
♪ ♪
- After we closed here,
You went out there and talked to a reporter.
This morning I now see an article
With a picture of my home.
My home-- - [speaks indistinctly]
I swear to you, I'm holding you personally responsible
For anything that happens at my house.
I promise you!
You and me are gonna have a problem.
- Hage's name was not mentioned in the article,
Which was about judge watson's standing
In a local homeowner's association.
But that doesn't stop him from continuing his attack.
- It's disgraceful.
Well, buddy, it's personal.
And I promise you, you will not hear the end of it from me.
You know, when you threaten my family,
I will personally see to it that you never see
A free day in your life.
You understand that?
You're going to jail. I swear to god.
♪ ♪
- Watkins eventually calms down
And tries to get back on track.
- Do you swear the testimony you're about to give
Is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,
So help you, god? - Yes.
- Miss wallace, what's the nature of your motion.
- Yep, the closing attorney is requiring his signature.
- All right, mr. Hage, what's your response?
- My response is I cannot sign this
Because it's against my conviction.
♪ ♪
- Watkins rules against hage
And says he must sign the deed
And pay a third party to expedite the process.
- I'm gonna direct that mr. Hage
Pay him the sum of $500 for his services
No later than Friday.
- I'll sign it.
I don't have that kind of money.
- I don't care. You'll find it.
It's a damn lie, and you know it's a damn lie!
- I cannot-- - how about--shut up.
I didn't tell you to talk. Did I tell you to talk?
What did I tell you right at the beginning of the hearing?
Are you deaf? Huh?
♪ ♪
- The judge ultimately rules in favor of lillian hage
And orders the pastor to pay a number of expenses
Once the house is sold.
- Shut up. I didn't ask you to speak.
- But hage has his own response
When he files a complaint against watkins
With the judicial investigation commission.
Judge watkins admits to overreacting
And recuses himself from the case.
But it doesn't end there.
It's later determined that judge watkins has a history
Of berating litigants and attorneys.
- I don't travel--
- Ma'am, I didn't ask you for a speech.
I'm not--I'm not-- - well, I'm not--
You're saying that-- - hush.
♪ ♪
What, you think this is funny? - No, I don't, sir, I don't.
I don't think it's-- - shut up.
Take his ass into custody. I'm tired of him.
♪ ♪
- Watkins' case makes it
To the west virginia court of appeals,
Where he's censured for 24 violations,
Including his offensive language
And failing to complete required tasks,
Like entering protective orders
Into the state's registry.
Watkins is suspended without pay
For the remaining four years of his term.
♪ ♪