CRIME

Ex-judge sentencing: Had ordered defendant shocked in court

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Saamir Jhaled Khaleel Kingaliis seen outside court in Greenbelt, Md., Thursday, March 31, 2016. A former Maryland judge who ordered Kingaliis to be physically shocked in his courtroom was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and participate in anger management classes. (AP Photo/Jessica Gresko) (The Associated Press)

This framegrab from video, provided by the Charles County, Md. Circuit Court, taken July 23, 2014, shown in court Thursday, March 31, 2016, shows Saamir Jhaled Khaleel Kingali on the floor after Judge Robrt C. Nalley ordered a deputy to activate a "stun-cuff" on Kingali. The former Maryland judge was sentenced Thursday, March 31, 2016, to participate in anger-management classes and pay a $5,000 fine. (Charles County, Md. Circuit Court via AP) (The Associated Press)

A former Maryland judge who pleaded guilty to a civil rights violation for ordering a defendant to be physically shocked in his courtroom is set to be sentenced.

Robert C. Nalley of La Plata, Maryland, awaits a scheduled sentencing Thursday in federal court.

Nalley faces a maximum sentence of a year in jail and a fine up to $100,000. But according to a plea agreement, prosecutors and Nalley's lawyer will recommend one year's probation.

Under the agreement, Nalley acknowledged that while presiding over a criminal trial in 2014, he ordered a deputy sheriff to activate a "stun-cuff" a defendant was wearing around his ankle. Documents say the defendant fell and screamed after being shocked.

Nalley acknowledged the stun cuff's use was "unreasonable under the circumstances."