Judge Vacates Jail Term For Teen Who Flipped Him Off
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The South Florida teen who was jailed after flipping off a Miami-Dade judge during a bond court hearing apologized to him in person on Friday afternoon.
The video of 18-year-old Penelope Soto's appearance before Circuit Judge Jorge Rodriguez-Chomat on Monday went viral due to her giving the judge the middle finger and telling him, "Go (expletive) yourself!" in response to the judge raising her bond from $5,000 to $10,000:
Soto chose to portray a different version of herself when apologizing to him in court Friday afternoon. Soto tearfully apologized to the judge, who said the episode should be a lesson in how to properly treat people:
Rodriguez-Chomat said Soto would have been a convicted felon if he allowed the contempt charge to stand.
Following her apology, the judge dropped her contempt of court charges and vacated her 30-day jail term. Soto was arrested for possession of Xanax last weekend.
Her lawyer said Soto will complete a drug court program, which includes treatment for drug addiction and usually results in charges eventually being dropped for first-time offenders.
Soto left the jail around 3 p.m. Friday.
Soto, 18, appeared in bond court for a drug possession hearing earlier this week and laughed when the judge asked her if she was under the influence.
He initially ordered Soto to be held on $5,000 bond, but after Soto laughed again and mockingly told the judge, "Adios", the judge summoned her back to the podium and increased her bond to $10,000. That's when Soto cursed and the judge and flipped him off, earning her 30 days in jail.
