PART IX — SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS AND ENFORCEMENT
Rule 79. Contempt and immediate platform control
Immediate control is not contempt
A presiding Justice or the Marshal may use the least restrictive immediate measure authorized by Rules 13 and 17 to stop disruption, protect safety, prevent disclosure, or preserve access. Muting, removing, restricting, relocating, pausing, or recessing:
is a platform-control measure, not a criminal judgment;
must end when no longer necessary;
must not decide the merits or punish a party through loss of a legal right; and
must be recorded if it materially affects participation.
When feasible, the Court must provide a warning and an alternative way for a party or counsel to continue.
Source and limit of contempt
Criminal contempt exists only to the extent defined by R.C.C. § 1.08 or another active law. This Rule supplies procedure and does not create an offense. A fine, confinement, or other criminal punishment may not exceed the statutory maximum and must be proportioned to the offense.
Direct contempt
Direct contempt is conduct occurring in the immediate view and presence of the convened Court and personally perceived by the presiding Justice. Conduct reported by another person, discovered later in a log, occurring outside the session, or consisting of disobedience away from the Court is not direct contempt even if it affects a pending case.
Summary procedure
The Court may punish direct contempt summarily only when immediate adjudication is necessary to maintain order. Before imposing punishment, the presiding Justice must:
identify the person and conduct on the record;
state the statutory element believed satisfied;
state that the conduct was personally perceived;
warn the person and allow correction when safety and order permit;
provide an opportunity to explain, claim privilege, apologize, or mitigate; and
consider whether platform control alone is sufficient.
The presiding Justice may take immediate platform-control measures and make the record needed to present the contempt issue. Only a quorum of the Court may adjudge contempt and fix punishment unless an active law expressly authorizes an individual Justice to do so. A Justice who has become personally embroiled or whose objectivity may reasonably be questioned must refer the matter for noticed proceedings before the other eligible Justices.
Summary order
Any summary contempt must be followed immediately by a written order stating:
the conduct, UTC time, venue, and relevant record;
the warning, if any;
the opportunity to be heard and the response;
each statutory finding beyond a reasonable doubt;
why summary action was necessary;
the punishment and reasons for proportionality; and
the right to seek rehearing or a stay.
The Clerk must preserve the official recording or authenticated text log with the order.
Contempt on notice
An alleged contempt that is indirect, no longer requires immediate action, rests on disputed evidence, or could warrant more than a minimal summary sanction must proceed by an order to show cause. The order must:
state the essential facts and statutory provision;
identify the maximum punishment under consideration;
set a hearing no earlier than twenty-four hours after service unless the respondent knowingly waives time; and
advise of the rights to counsel, silence, evidence, and confrontation.
The Attorney General, a lawful successor under 2 R. Stat. § 121.107, or a Special Counsel appointed by the Attorney General under 2 R. Stat. §§ 122.301 through 122.302 must present the charge. If no officer with lawful prosecutorial authority appears, the Court must not proceed as prosecutor. The Court must find every element beyond a reasonable doubt. If confinement is possible and law provides appointed counsel, the Court must resolve representation before proceeding.
False reports of proceedings
An allegation concerning publication of a false or grossly inaccurate report under R.C.C. § 1.08 is never direct contempt unless every statutory and constitutional requirement for immediate in-presence conduct is independently met. The Court must protect freedom of speech and press, distinguish opinion from factual assertion, require proof of every statutory element and any mental state required by controlling constitutional or other law, and use noticed proceedings before any punishment.
Civil contempt
A coercive or compensatory measure designed to obtain compliance rather than punish a completed act is civil contempt. In a matter where civil contempt is lawfully available, Rid. R. Civ. P. 53 applies so far as compatible with Supreme Court procedure. Every coercive order must identify how the person may purge, and inability to perform must be considered as that Rule requires.
Attorneys, parties, and nonparties
Contempt against counsel must not be visited on the client. A nonparty may be bound only after actual notice and to the extent law permits. Attorney discipline, case sanctions, and contempt are distinct; referral or additional action requires separate authority and process.
No duplicate punishment
The Court must not impose civil and criminal contempt sanctions for the same conduct and same purpose, or punish a person twice for one continuous act. Immediate platform control may precede contempt but must be considered in selecting the least sufficient sanction.
Rehearing and stay
A petition for rehearing of a Supreme Court contempt judgment is due within three days after entry of judgment and otherwise follows Rule 74. A request to stay an unexecuted punishment may be made immediately to the Duty Justice, but continued relief requires the Court when Rule 62 so provides.