An Atlanta in-house lawyer spent a night in jail after she improperly contacted a DeKalb County judge by email, saying that she would “blame the plaintiff” in a trial for which she had been selected as a juror because she’d have to work nights and weekends to attend to her own client.

DeKalb State Court Judge Dax Lopez held Wilma Elizabeth Beaty in contempt, jailed her for 24 hours, fined her $500 and reported his findings to the State Bar of Georgia.