Judge Suggests Juvenile Offenders Go Jogging

Despite his noble intentions, the Florida Supreme Court says no to the running judge.

One Florida judge has gotten pretty creative. Instead of ordering juvenile offenders to pick up trash or commit other acts of community service, the judge, who currently remains anonymous, has suggested something unique: go jogging with him.

According to Florida law, juveniles can perform community service as a condition for receiving probation. The anonymous judge has suggested they do this by joining him for a run near his courthouse.

This suggestion was struck down by the Florida Supreme Court’s judicial ethics advisory committee, which indicated that such a program would raise questions about the judge’s impartiality.

“The judge should consider the perspective of the juvenile who is unwilling or unable to participate in the program,” the ruling states. “That juvenile reasonably may suspect that he or she will receive less favorable treatment than those who participate in the program.”

Despite turning down the idea, the committee pointed out the judge’s good intentions.

“The judge wishes to create this program to serve juveniles in several ways: curb their delinquency; improve their health; give them a more positive self-image; and provide them with positive role models,” it ruled.

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