This one is always a fun one. Based on a real court transcript: https://youtu.be/7vN_PEmeKb0
I once judged an oil wrestling contest. Does that count?
Well, I’m not a judge but I was in traffic court once and the following exchange happened:
“So Miss [defendant] you’re here for a… seat cushion violation? Is that even a thing?”
“Apparently your honour, the officer said I was too short”
(Long discussion with the state attorney and judge followed, they had white noise but you could see the judge was clearly thinking this was an idiotic ticket).
“How tall are you Miss?”
“About 5 feet”
“This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard of, case dismissed”.
I looked it up later, there is a real restriction in Florida to say you need a raised seat if you are very short to see over the steering wheel but this is presumably for people with dwarfism or other such conditions rather than petite women.
Edit: https://www.flhsmv.gov/driver-licenses-id-cards/general-information/license-classes-endorsements-designations/ – apparently this is no longer a thing, the state must have thought it was stupid also.
Also not a judge, but I work with a psychologist who does some work in mental hospitals and has to testify as to whether they should or should not be released. Court is over the phone right now because of Covid, so I was privy to the little exchange.
My boss’s patient is schizophrenic and was refusing his medication. My boss was testifying as to why he shouldn’t be released (violent to his family, active psychosis), much to the patient’s displeasure. The patient starts yelling, “Man, I wanna get out of here! It’s so nasty. They got SNAKES in here.”
The judge replied, “Sir, the quickest way to get released is to comply with your medication. And the medication will also help you with your snake problem….”
Judges of MassimoL. Lol