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Mom Breast-Feeds While Giving Plea in Court

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WAUKESHA - A mom from Milwaukee was pleading guilty to a crime in a Waukesha County courtroom when her baby became fussy and hungry, so she proceeded to give her baby a breast-fed meal while giving her guilty plea.

Waukesha County Reserve Judge Neal Nettesheim brought Kiyo Clemons forward on a case of issuing a worthless check.

"When I called the case, she came forward with her lawyer and with a young baby," said Judge Nettesheim.

As the judge started her case, the baby started to fuss.

"The child was somewhat restless, crying a bit, interfering slightly with the proceedings."

So Kiyo, who's 35, did what many moms do, even in public places.

"The woman simply brought the child down to the area of her breast and started nursing the child. The child quieted down."

Workers in Judge Nettesheim's courtroom were shocked.

"They were similarly taken aback for a moment," admitted Nettesheim.

Still, it's not like she bared her breast in public.

"The breast-feeding was done very discretely."

Though some in the courtroom exposed their surprise at the proceedings, as Judge Nettesheim put it, "I proceeded to conduct the proceeding and take the woman's guilty plea, and concluded the case."

This courtroom event was a rare one in a long career for Nettesheim.

"I've been a judge for about 35 years, and I've seen most everything, but this one was novel, and different."

Judge Nettesheim thought about offering her a few minutes to give her child the meal before giving her guilty plea.

"I had considered whether I should suspend the case momentarily, to allow the woman to complete the breast-feeding, but it was a busy calendar inasmuch as the event did not interfere with my ability to conduct with the proceeding, and did not appear to interfere with the defendant's ability to understand the ability, and raised no concern on the part of our lawyer. I simply felt that it was appropriate to go forward."

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