A Michigan judge is getting national attention after she berated a 72-year-old cancer patient for failing to maintain his property.
Burhan Chowdhury lives in the Detroit suburb of Hamtramck, Michigan. In August, he was cited for failing to maintain his overgrown yard.
Last week, Chowdhury appeared in court, where 31st District Judge Alexis Krot berated him for the yard's condition.
"That is shameful," Krot said, later adding that "if I could give you jail time on this, I would."
Chowdhury and his family explained that the condition of the yard was due, in part, to his failing health.
Chowdhury's son, Shibbir Chowdhury, told WDIV-TV in Detroit that his father was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes in 2019. He said chemotherapy treatments took a toll on his father's mobility.
"It felt very bad to me because this town, nobody wants to hear about father going to jail," Shibbir Chowdhury told WDIV.
According to WDIV, Shibbir Chowdhury typically takes care of the yardwork for his father. However, he left the country over the summer, leading the yard to become overgrown.
"That was really a mistake," Shibbir Chowdhury told WDIV. "I should've taken care of that. But yeah, it's still like she should have told my father more politely."
The family says they plan to pay the $100 fine, and the property has already been cleaned up.
