"Good morning, sir, what's your name?" Chief Judge Jeffrey Middleton asked at what could have been a routine virtual arraignment on Tuesday.
"Nathaniel Saxton, sir" was the polite response in this St. Joseph County District courtroom in suburban Michigan. But wait! This wasn't close to a routine court case as Nathaniel wasn't the name the defendant gave himself on the Zoom ID for the appearance.
He had named himself 'Buttf***** 3000.'
"Your name's not buttf*** 3000? You yoho ... What kind of idiot logs into court like that?" the judge said, before telling the defendant he would have to go to the waiting room to sit for a while and think about what he should be calling himself online.
Saxton tried to protest that he didn't know how the moniker was being used on his call. He apologized and said he hadn't done it.
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When he returned, he explained his sister had set up the account, using that screen name as a joke. The judge wasn't laughing.
Ultimately, Saxton was fined $200 for possession of drug paraphernalia and the judge let the rest slide.