In her open rebuke, the judge said “When the court was reviewing the security footage inside the courtroom, … it showed Mr. Neel turning around and looking to [see] when court personnel had walked away from him on one occasion before he pulled the vaporizer out of his pocket…”And then it also showed Mr. Neel putting the vaporizer into his pocket as I was entering the courtroom.”
The Judge made it clear that she felt Mr. Neel knew his conduct was wrong, but he chose to engage in it anyway.”
Mr. Neel was fined $300 for each of the six days he vaped. The judge also ordered him to pay $250 for the half-hour spent hearing the vape issue which is to be paid to the opposing lawyers at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, plus another $93 for the three hours it took court security to investigate and review footage.
Mr. Neel was caught vaping during a trial that Judge Henderson presided over in Youngstown, next to the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.
Attorney Neel represents Diana Cranfield, who filed a lawsuit against her employer, Costco Wholesale Corp., in 2020, alleging disability discrimination, race discrimination, and retaliation claims.
