Judge revisits controversial domestic violence case

SANFORD, Fla. – A Seminole County judge had no additional comments on Tuesday about a domestic violence case that landed her in the national spotlight earlier this year.

Courtroom cameras caught Eighteenth Judicial Circuit Judge Jerri Collins berating the alleged domestic abuse victim after she failed to show up to testify against her husband.

The woman claimed Myles Brennan threatened her and their one-year-old child with a kitchen knife in April.
Collins held a special hearing in July to ask the woman why she failed testify.

The woman told Collins she had been suffering from depression and anxiety since the attack and since divorce proceedings began.

Collins challenged the woman's account of what happened, at times yelling her questions at her.

The judge found the woman in contempt of court and sent her to jail for three days.

The video of Collins' interaction with the woman made national headlines, and it also prompted a complaint to be filed with the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission.

Tuesday, Collins presided over Brennan's sentencing review.

She ruled Brennan had served his 16 days in jail and had paid all of his fees and fines.

She said nothing more about the allegations against her.

News 6 checks for an update with the Judicial Qualifications Commission every day, and, so far, there has been no decision if Collins should be reprimanded for the incident.


About the Author

Erik Sandoval joined the News 6 team as a reporter in May 2013 and became an Investigator in 2020. During his time at News 6, Erik has covered several major stories, including the 2016 Presidential campaign. He was also one of the first reporters live on the air at the Pulse Nightclub shooting.

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