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Magistrate resigns after detaining, arresting woman filing a PFA

HAMILTON COUNTY, Ohio — A Hamilton County common pleas court magistrate says he was forced to resign this week after video cameras caught him chasing a woman down courthouse hallways and leading her by hand into his courtroom, then ordering her arrested.

Former magistrate Michael Bachman told WCPO he left the bench to confront Kassandra Jackson because she was yelling outside his courtroom and disrupting a hearing.

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On the courthouse surveillance cameras, you can see Jackson trying to file for a protection order, but the staff told her she missed the deadline and would have to come back.

Witnesses say she got so angry that Bachman claimed he couldn't hear an attorney question a witness in his courtroom. Bachman charged through the door to the hallway and followed Jackson.

She turned and spoke to him, then walked away. Bachman jogged after her, pointing at her and ordering her to return to his courtroom.

As she moved toward a side hallway, Bachman put his hand on the back of her shoulder and guided her back, then kept his hand there for 23 seconds until he pushed her into a seat in the jury box. Then Bachman and Jackson continued talking to each other. A minute later, deputies tried to take her into custody, but she tried to escape then resisted the arrest.

She was sentenced to three days in jail but served two days.