Federal Judge Handcuffs Crying 13-Year-Old Girl Attending Father's Hearing

Earlier this month, Judge Roger Benitez of the Southern District of California decided to traumatize a child for attending a public hearing to supp...

February 28, 2023
12:18 AM

Earlier this month, Judge Roger Benitez of the Southern District of California decided to traumatize a child for attending a public hearing to support her father. That sounds like it must be taken out of context — that there must be some precipitating action that justified the judge's actions. But as it turns out, that is the whole story! The events arose from a final revocation hearing for Mario Puente. After admitting to violating his supervised release, Puente told the judge that he feels he needs to be able to leave San Diego to make a total break from his problematic contacts.

Joe Patrice