“IT’S NOT OVER!” Judge Reams Out Pastor In Divorce Court [NSFW Video]

Hurricane, WV – “A pastor in divorce court gets reamed out by a judge,” sounds like the start of a great joke, but it was actual, factual reality in West Virginian court. And there is video. The judge presiding over the divorce settlement apparently felt that the pastor was at the center of a threat to his family’s security and chewed – him – out. You have never seen a court blow-up like this.

Arthur Hage, pastor of Hurricane Bible Church in Hurricane, West Virginia, was on the receiving end of an incredibly brutal verbal beating from Putnam family law Judge William Watkins on May 23rd. The 63-year-old pastor was in court with his wife, Lillian Hage, attempting to settle their divorce (specifically, the sale of their home bore some discrepancy). Cameras rolling, Watkins took to screaming at Hage pretty much from the start.

Watkins was upset over an article posted to PutnamLIVE.com, that characterizes the judge in an unfavorable light. The article was about a letter Watkins’ homeowners’ association sent out listing him as “not in good standing,” reports the Huffington Post. Watkins blamed Hage for the article, the photo, and for speaking with the reporter who wrote the article (Hage and PutnamLIVE deny his involvement).

Between verbal spats, Watkins apologized and attempted to recuse himself from the case several times. After the incident, Hage filed a formal complaint against Watkins with the state Judicial Investigation Commission. “Obviously, the judge lost his temper,” state Supreme Court administrator Steve Canterbury told the Charleston Gazette. “Judges are humans; they can lose their temper. Ideally, he would’ve called a recess, regained his composure and come back even-tempered and he didn’t.”

That’s an understatement.

Since the incident, nothing much has come of it, as the state’s Supreme Court dropped their investigation in July. But Hage isn’t willing to forgive and forget. “They let him off everything. They would not do anything to him. They knew he was bad, he was guilty, he was wrong, but they wouldn’t do anything to him. In this country, this ought not to be allowed,” he said.

Hage is pursuing legal options, but they don’t include a lawsuit. “Since the late 1800s, you can’t sue a judge,” he said. He has another measure in mind, though he wouldn’t elaborate. “The courts have demanded I not say anything,” he said.

Anyway, here’s the video of the judge reaming out this pastor in divorce court. Decide for yourself and sound off below!