Q: What does a judge mean by “read the riot act” to a person on pre trail diversion?
My ex wife is on pre trial diversion for child support. I never receive hardly anything (maybe 20 a month), when she’s ordered to pay $500. She had court and I was told the judge “read the riot act” to her. What does this mean?
A: That is slang for the judge told her he was going to send her to prison if she didn’t make the most of the pretrial diversion opportunity or if she committed any new crimes. It’s a stern waning not to screw up.
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