Rule 43. Summary Contempt Proceedings

Disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent behavior toward the judge while holding court, or in the proceeding communications for a case, tending to interrupt the proceeding or to impair the respect due the court;

Wilful disobedience of, or resistance to, a lawful order, process, or command of the court;

The refusal of a witness, having been sworn, to answer a question after being directed by the court to answer, where no privilege has been sustained;

The refusal of a person to be sworn or to affirm as a witness when lawfully required;

The departure of a summoned witness from the proceeding without excusal by the court and before the proceeding is adjudicated, as 6 R. Stat. § 131.302 provides;

The unauthorized disclosure of a sealed matter, of a grand jury proceeding, or of material protected by an order entered under Rule 14(a)(6); and

Any other act or omission which the law declares to be a criminal contempt.

summary punishment is necessary to maintain order in the courtroom;

the contemptuous conduct occurred in the presence of, and was witnessed by, the presiding judge; and

the presiding judge enters a preliminary finding at the time of the contemptuous conduct that a criminal contempt occurred.

State that the judge has made the preliminary finding required by subdivision (3)(c);

Recite the conduct constituting the contempt, in terms sufficient to identify the act, the time, and the place, and state that the judge personally witnessed it;

Identify the contemnor by username;

Afford the contemnor an opportunity to be heard in mitigation or in excuse of the conduct, and to state any claim of right, privilege, or lawful authority for it. The opportunity shall be afforded before punishment is imposed and shall be adequate to the conduct charged; and

State the finding of contempt, the punishment imposed, and the reasons for it.

Reprimand the contemnor on the record;

Exclude the contemnor from the proceeding communications, or from the place in which the court is sitting, for a stated period not exceeding the remainder of the proceeding, subject to Rule 45 where the contemnor is the defendant;

Impose a fine, proportioned to the offense as Const. art. V § 10 requires;

Assess against the contemnor the costs occasioned by the contempt; and

Set a term of confinement for the contempt, within the limits fixed by subdivision (8)(b) of this rule, and set the timer of the contemnor for the criminal contempt only. Contempt of court is an offense under R.C.C. § 1.08, and no term set under this paragraph shall exceed the punishment that section permits.

Measure. The punishment shall be the least sanction adequate to maintain order and to vindicate the authority of the court.

Term. A term of confinement imposed summarily shall not exceed thirty (30) minutes for a single act of contempt, and the aggregate of such terms imposed upon one person in a single proceeding shall not exceed sixty (60) minutes. A punishment exceeding these limits shall be imposed only upon notice and hearing under subdivision (10).

Timing. Summary punishment shall be imposed at the time of the conduct or immediately upon the conclusion of the session in which it occurred. A contempt not so punished shall be prosecuted upon notice and hearing.

Separate Acts. Successive contemptuous acts may be punished separately only where each is separately found and separately recited. A continuous course of conduct is a single contempt.

The Defendant’s Rights. Summary punishment of the defendant shall not interrupt the trial to the defendant’s prejudice, shall not be a ground to try the defendant in the defendant’s absence, no summary punishment being a waiver or a forfeiture of presence within 6 R. Stat. § 131.501(b) or Rule 18(b), and shall not be imposed in a manner which deprives the defendant of the assistance of counsel. A term of confinement imposed summarily under subdivision (8)(b) does not render the defendant voluntarily absent within Rule 18(b)(2)(A), and the court shall recess rather than proceed in the defendant’s absence.

Counsel. Where the contemnor is an attorney, the judge shall consider whether the conduct is more appropriately addressed under Rule 48. Summary punishment of counsel shall not be visited upon counsel’s client.

Claims of Privilege. A refusal to testify shall not be punished summarily until the court has ruled upon the claim of privilege asserted and has directed the witness to answer, and the witness has persisted in the refusal. A witness compelled to testify under Rule 17.1 and 6 R. Stat. § 131.303 who refuses after the order of compulsion may be punished under this rule.

Embroilment. A judge who has become personally embroiled with the contemnor, or against whom the contumacious conduct was a personal attack such that the judge’s objectivity may reasonably be questioned, shall not punish summarily but shall refer the contempt for prosecution upon notice and hearing before another judge.

The conduct constituting the contempt;

That the conduct occurred in the presence of the court and was witnessed by the judge;

The warning given, if any;

That the contemnor was afforded an opportunity to be heard in mitigation, and the substance of what the contemnor said or that the contemnor declined to speak;

The finding of contempt;

The punishment imposed and its duration or amount; and

The reasons for the punishment imposed.

The conduct did not occur in the presence of the court, or was not witnessed by the presiding judge;

The contempt consists of disobedience of an order out of the presence of the court;

Summary punishment is not necessary to maintain order;

The punishment sought exceeds the limits of subdivision (8)(b);

The contempt was not punished at the time under subdivision (8)(c); or

The judge is disqualified under subdivision (8)(h).

Initiation. The proceeding is initiated by an order to show cause entered by the court on its own initiative or upon the application of a prosecutor.

Contents of the Order. The order to show cause shall state the time and place of the hearing, the essential facts constituting the contempt charged, the provision of these rules or the order alleged to have been violated, and that a punishment may be imposed, describing the maximum punishment which may be imposed.

Notice. The order shall be served upon the person charged by electronic service, and shall be given in the proceeding communications where the person is a participant in the case. The hearing shall be held not less than twenty-four (24) hours after service, unless the person consents to an earlier hearing.

Prosecution. The court may request that a prosecutor prosecute the contempt. Where the contempt consists of disobedience of an order obtained by a party, the court may permit that party’s counsel to prosecute it, unless the interest of that party would prevent a disinterested prosecution.

Rights of the Person Charged. The person charged is entitled to be present, to be represented by counsel, to have counsel appointed where the person is indigent and confinement may be imposed, to present evidence, to cross-examine the witnesses against the person, and to remain silent. A trial by jury is not available, a contempt not being a charge of treason within 6 R. Stat. §§ 131.111 and 131.306.

Burden. Contempt shall be found only upon proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

Judgment. The court shall enter a written judgment of contempt reciting the findings, the punishment, and the reasons for it.

Disqualification. Where the contempt charged involves disrespect toward or criticism of the presiding judge, the contempt shall be heard by another judge assigned for that purpose.