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STARGAZING
Chad Johnson out of jail today after butt-slap incident
June 17
Chad Johnson is going home from jail today, one week after a Florida judge sentenced him to 30 days behind bars after he slapped his male lawyer on the rear during court.
Johnson reportedly appeared in front of Broward County Circuit Judge Kathleen McHugh again this morning, in handcuffs. TMZ reports that the judge blasted him again for his disrespectful behavior in front of her.
Then she agreed to release him from jail, but added a month to his probation time.
"I just wanted to apologize for disrespecting the court last time," Johnson told the judge. "I apologize. I did have time to reflect on the mistakes I made in this courtroom."
To recap ...
Last Monday Johnson, formerly known as Ochocinco, stood in front of McHugh for a recent probation violation in the domestic violence case concerning ex-wife Evelyn Lozada.
He’s on probation after pleading no contest to head-butting reality TV star Lozada during an altercation last August.
(During today's hearing, the judge called what he did to Lozada “horrific.”)
When McHugh asked Johnson if he was satisfied with his lawyer, Adam Swickle, Johnson playfully reached out and slapped his lawyer’s butt, which sent the judge into a tizzy.
“I don’t know that you’re taking this whole thing seriously. I just saw you slap your attorney on the backside. Is there something funny about this?” the judge asked angrily.
“The whole courtroom was laughing. I’m not going to accept these plea negotiations. This isn’t a joke.”
Johnson tried to apologize, but McHugh would have none of it, sending Johnson off to jail for 30 days on the probation violation.
Public consensus seemed to be that McHugh had gone overboard with her actions.
In court today, Swickle said that Johnson would fully comply with all the probation conditions and that he even hopes to play football again. The Miami Dolphins cut the six-time Pro Bowler after he was arrested last summer.
"He understands that this is the kind of situation that can derail a person's career," Swickle said. "We're very confident he will do what he should do."
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