A Missouri judge who bullied two children who were not part of their parents’ divorce case, but were the targets of a custody fight, has been ordered to pay more than $330,000 after he bullied them, putting them in a lockup because they would not leave the courthouse with their mother as he demanded.
According to the Justia website about court precedents, “Two children, whose parents divorced in Missouri, were involved in a custody dispute. After the parents agreed to a custody arrangement, the children refused to leave the courthouse with their mother.”
Then, the report said, “Judge Eric Eighmy intervened, escorting the children to a conference room and later to the juvenile division, where repeated threats of foster care failed to persuade them. Ultimately, Judge Eighmy ordered a juvenile officer to lock the children in holding cells for twenty to forty minutes, after which they agreed to leave with their mother.”
The report noted, “The children’s father brought suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, alleging violations of their Fourth Amendment rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Judge Eighmy’s claim for judicial immunity was denied both at the motion-to-dismiss and summary-judgment stages, and the Eighth Circuit previously affirmed that denial in Rockett ex rel. K.R. v. Eighmy, 71 F.4th 665 (8th Cir. 2023). After a trial, the jury found for the children, awarding $5,000 each in damages. The district court resubmitted the damages issue for clarification and ultimately upheld the jury’s award, also granting $326,637.22 in attorney fees.”
Now the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the result.
Missouri judge loses. 8th Circuit rules Judge Eric Eighmy is not immune for locking two kids in courthouse holding cells in 2019 because they refused to leave with their mother after a custody hearing. Parents Bart Rockett and Kami Ballard had just agreed on a modification giving the mother primary custody (with scheduled time for the father). Their kids—Kadan and Brooklyn Rockett, then about 14 and 12, known as the “Kid Magicians” from America’s Got Talent were waiting outside. When told of the deal, they refused to go with mom. Judge Eighmy stepped into the lobby, took the children to a conference room, and told them they had no choice or they could end up in foster care. When they still wouldn’t budge, he led them to the juvenile holding area, had a juvenile officer pat them down and make them remove their socks and shoes, and stood by while they were locked in separate cells for roughly 20–40 minutes. Only after he returned and threatened foster care again did they agree to leave with their mother. The kids were never parties to the case, never entered the courtroom, and were not charged with any offense. Refusing to go with a parent after a custody arrangement isn’t a crime. A 2024 jury found the detention violated their Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable seizure and awarded each child $5,000. The appeals court has now confirmed there was no probable cause, no warrant, and no exigent circumstances, and that the law was clearly established. “Rough justice does not trump the Constitution.” Judicial immunity doesn’t protect a judge who personally acts as a jailer.
— Girl patriot 🙏 🇺🇸 🦅 (@Girlpatriot1974) October 14, 2026
MISSOURI JUDGE OVERSTEPS & PERSONALLY JAILS TWO KIDS FOR SAYING NO TO MOM & FEDERAL COURT STRIPS HIS ABSOLUTE JUDICIAL IMMUNITY A Federal Appeals Court Ruled Today That A Missouri Judge Cannot Claim Judicial Immunity After He Personally Locked Two Children In Holding Cells Because They Refused To Leave With Their Mother. In October 2019 In Taney County Near Branson, Brooklyn & Kadan Rockett Waited Outside The Courtroom While Their Parents Worked Out A Temporary Custody Plan. The Kids Wanted To Stay With Their Dad So Their Acting & Magic Careers Would Not Stop. They Had Reached The Semifinals On America’s Got Talent In 2016. After The Hearing Ended, The Children Argued In The Courthouse Hallway & Would Not Go With Their Mom. Judge Eric Eighmy Took Off His Robe, Walked Over, & Told Them They Had To Leave With Her. He Led Them To A Conference Room, Then To The Juvenile Area. He Told Staff To Keep An Eye On Them. He Then Had A Juvenile Officer Lock Them In Separate Holding Cells. The Officer Patted Them Down & Made Them Remove Their Shoes & Socks While The Judge Stood Right There. He Threatened To Put Them In Foster Care Where They Would Never See Their Family Again. After About Twenty To Forty Minutes In The Cells, They Agreed & He Let Them Go. The Children Were Never Parties To The Case & Never Stepped Inside The Courtroom. Their Father Later Sued Under Federal Civil Rights Law For Unreasonable Seizure. A Jury Awarded Each Child Five Thousand Dollars. The Court Added More Than $326,000 In Attorney Fees & Costs. The Total Came To Over $336,000. Today The U.S. Court Of Appeals For The Eighth Circuit Upheld That Award. Judge David Stras Wrote That Judge Eighmy Violated The Children’s Clearly Established Fourth Amendment Rights. The Court Said “Judges Do Not Do Double Duty As Jailers” & “Rough Justice Does Not Trump The Constitution.” A Reasonable Judge Should Have Known Better. No Probable Cause Existed & No Warrant Supported The Lockup. Refusing To Leave With A Parent Is Not A Crime That Lets A Judge Jail Kids Himself. The Ruling Builds On An Earlier Eighth Circuit Decision That Already Said The Judge Crossed The Line When He Personally Escorted The Kids To Jail & Stayed While They Were Locked Up. The Case Is Brooklyn Rockett & Kadan Rockett Versus Eric Eighmy. Official Opinion Available Through The Eighth Circuit Docket Number 25-1664.
— John Basham (@JohnBasham) October 13, 2026
“The court held that Judge Eighmy’s actions constituted an unreasonable seizure in violation of clearly established Fourth Amendment rights. The court also dismissed the appeal regarding judicial immunity, finding it unreviewable due to procedural forfeiture. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the damages and attorney fees awards, finding no abuse of discretion by the district court,” Justia reported.
A report at the Gateway Pundit explained the “humiliating defeat” sustained by the Eric Eighmy.
The decision was by Circuit Judge David Stras, affirming $10,000 in damages to the children plus $326,7637.22 in attorneys’ fees.
It was, the report said, Kadan and Brooklyn Rockett who refused the judge’s orders as they wanted to stay with their father “to avoid disrupting their budding entertainment careers.”
Eventually, they advanced to the semifinals of America’s Got Talent in 2016 with their “jaw-dropping magic act and have appeared in Hollywood films.”
They never were parties to the divorce dispute and had been arguing with their mother in a courthouse hallway.
There, Eighmy, “removed his robe, intervened, lectured the children on the ‘evils of Hollywood,’ and grew frustrated when they stood firm,” the report said.
Eventually, he had them locked in separate cells, threatening to send them to foster care “where they would never see their family again,” the report said.
Eighmy claimed absolute judicial immunity, but his claim was rejected.
The appeals court said, “When Judge Eric Eighmy had courthouse officers lock two children in holding cells because they refused to leave with their mother following a custody hearing, he violated their clearly established Fourth Amendment rights.”
