Sometimes things don’t hit you right away. You know something’s off, but it doesn’t fully click until later.
That’s what happened last night.
Sara was put on probation after a contempt finding. It bothered all of us, but it didn’t really register what that meant until it finally hit… you can’t be sentenced to probation for civil contempt. That’s a criminal punishment. Full stop.
There was no criminal charge. No criminal hearing. No due process. Just a civil contempt finding and a judge who thought (or pretended) he had the authority to impose criminal sentencing in a civil matter.
And get this, it wasn’t even his idea.
It was suggested by Lord Hexter on the stand.
And the judge just went with it.
Let that sink in. A judge taking directions from a party to the case, a party with in prison, with no custody, and a long, abusive history. Lord Hexter is not just a litigant. He is an abuser. A known one. His history of abuse is part of the record. And he is in prison, as a tier III convicted child sex offender. He should never have had the opportunity to influence court sanctions at all, let alone suggest an illegal sentence that the judge adopted without hesitation.
The court didn’t just cross a line. It obliterated the entire separation between civil and criminal law and it did so at the urging of someone who has already caused irreparable harm to Sara and her children, and the life another child that is the reason he is currently incarcerated.
For reference:
Civil contempt is governed under 42 Pa.C.S. § 4137, which allows for coercive sanctions like fines or incarceration until compliance.
Criminal contempt, under 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132, is punitive and requires full criminal due process.
Probation is a criminal penalty. No Pennsylvania statute permits probation as a sanction for civil contempt. Zero. None.
This wasn’t just a procedural mistake. This was a judge acting with a complete absence of jurisdiction, influenced by a party who had no business shaping legal outcomes.
And the most disturbing part?
It slipped by in the moment.
Because that’s how deep the dysfunction has gone, abuse of power disguised as judicial discretion. It took a minute for our brains to catch up to what just happened.
But now it’s on the record.
And make no mistake, this won’t be swept under the rug.
It’s time for those involved to face the consequences of their actions, and we’re not backing down until they do.