Michigan judge snaps at woman who appeared on Zoom while driving

A Michigan judge refused to hear a case after noticing that a woman appeared to be joining a Zoom court hearing while behind the wheel of a car.

Kimberly Carroll appeared before Woodhaven District Judge Michael K. McNally this week for a debt case involving $1,788.80 owed to LVNV Funding, plus $75 in court fees and a $585 service cost a total of $1,921.85. 

However, the hearing quickly turned contentious when Carroll insisted she was a passenger, even as video footage suggested she was sitting in the driver’s seat.

“You cannot be driving, ma’am,” McNally told Carroll, according to WJBK’s Fox 2 Detroit.

“I’m not driving, I’m a passenger in a car,” Carroll replied, claiming a family emergency and saying she would have her driver pull over.

McNally pressed further, questioning, “Am I crazy, or does it not look like you’re driving that car? What side of the car are you on?” Carroll responded that she was on the left-hand side, leading the judge to point out that the seatbelt came from the driver’s side.

“Now you’re lying to me, right?” McNally asked. “Let me see the driver. You think I’m that stupid?”

Following the exchange, Carroll exited the vehicle, but the judge ultimately entered a default judgment. “Judgment [$1,921.85] … The defendant was not available at the time and then was driving a car and telling the court she was not,” he said.

The case highlights the challenges of remote court appearances and the need for participants to follow strict safety protocols.