So where is the gavel, you know that wooden hammer that the judge always pounds away on his bench when he wants to make a point or end the court session? So what's with the judge pounding away with a pencil? Didn't they have money in the budget to spring for a gavel? Johnny Carson can do finger gymnastics with a pencil but why should a large man in a black frock try to use a pencil as a gavel?
shareHe was tapping on the desk with his eyeglass frame.
shareYou must be thinking of the 3 PM episodes featuring Gavel MacLeod who would later star on The Love Boat.
shareIndeed, many judges chose to use something less heavy than a gavel to gain attention. The female judge used a pen for that purpose, for example. I remember, however, the bearded judge banging his gavel several times, barking "Order, order!"
In real life, a ruckus during a court session is probably a rather rare phenomenon, and many judges may not be used to using the gavel for that purpose at all.
You may cross-examine.
I don't recall many judicial admonitions of "another outburst like that and I'll clear the courtroom of extras."
shareI was watching an episode this week and I noticed the same thing! When he has banging his desk to get order in the court, I was wondering why he wasn't using a gavel. It looked like a pen. It made quite s noise though and hit the job done.
shareNot using a gavel might had been the Sound Dept choice. Could have been too loud for the microphones.
share